WASHINGTON, Dec. 2 (UPI) -- The outgoing head of the U.S. central bank warned Friday, in unusually blunt terms, that lawmakers must retract entitlements or face fiscal catastrophe.
"I fear that we may have already committed more physical resources to the baby boom generation in its retirement years than our economy has the capacity to deliver," said Alan Greenspan, in a videotaped address to a meeting of Philadelphia bankers.
The speech marked one of his most forceful warnings that Congress has vastly overcommitted itself to social programs for which no credible hope of funding exists.
"New programs, whether spending or tax benefits, quickly develop constituencies who tend to fiercely resist any curtailment. As a consequence, our ability to rein in deficit-expanding initiatives ... is quite limited. History has shown that (social commitments) cannot be easily curtailed if resources later fall short of commitments."
Greenspan, who next month concludes 18 years at the helm of the Federal Reserve, specifically ruled out both tax hikes and the hope of rising economic productivity as capable of meeting the soon-to-balloon payments.
"No changes will be easy, as they all will involve setting priorities -- and, in the main, lowering claims on resources."
