NEW YORK, March 3 (UPI) -- President George Bush's proposed Social Security reforms are out of step with a majority of people surveyed in a New York Times/CBS poll.
Four months after Bush won re-election, 63 percent of respondents say the president has different priorities on domestic issues than most U.S. residents. Asked to choose among five domestic issues facing the country, respondents rated Social Security third, behind jobs and health care.
Despite Bush's argument people should have more control over their retirement savings, almost four out of five respondents said it was the government's responsibility to assure a decent standard of living for the elderly.
On Bush's centerpiece of the plan, 51 percent said permitting individuals to invest part of their Social Security taxes in private accounts was a bad idea. The number who thought private accounts were a bad idea jumped to 69 percent if respondents were told the private accounts would result in a reduction in guaranteed benefits.
The poll was conducted by telephone with 1,111 adults Thursday through Monday and has a margin of sampling error of 3 percentage points.
