WASHINGTON, Jan. 6 (UPI) -- The White House is warning conservative Republicans that privatizing part of Social Security without also cutting benefits is foolish.
Some Congressional conservatives argue creating private investment accounts is all that's needed to fix the retirement system, the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday.
But President Bush's director of strategic initiatives e-mailed a memo to conservatives Monday opposing that view.
"You may know, that there is a small number of conservatives who prefer to push only for investment accounts and make no effort to adjust benefits." Calling that "a bad idea," the memo said. "We simply cannot solve the Social Security problem with Personal Retirement Accounts alone. If the goal is permanent solvency and sustainability -- as we believe it should be," such accounts "for all their virtues, are insufficient to that task."
To fail to make benefit cuts while diverting payroll taxes to workers' personal accounts, the memo said, would be irresponsible and "have serious short-term economic consequences."
