Social Security is Not At Risk On Debt Ceiling

07-13-2011 • Market-ticker.org

To the peanut gallery that don't "get it": There is zero risk of Social Security and Medicare checks not going out if the debt ceiling is not raised for the next three years. Got it? Zero. How? Here's how: That total debt number is the amount subject to the limit, more or less. But the "Intragovernmental Holdings" is the amount that the Social Security and Medicare trust funds are "owed" by the general fund. The Treasury can redeem those by selling new bonds into the market in a 1:1 ratio and if they do so they now have dollars in an exactly equal amount. That's $4.6 trillion dollars. How much is Social Security and Medicare every year? That's easy - we can look at the Trustee report, which says that in 2010 the total expenditures were $1.235 trillion. Note that these funds also receive tax monies and in 2010 they took in $1.267 trillion. Wait a second...... they took in more than they spent? Indeed, which means that the only reason the Treasury has a problem in the present tense is that they have been stealing the tax revenues and replacing them with yet more IOUs. (Note that due to the boomers retiring and medicare cost advances, which are relentless, both of these funds are bankrupt in the intermediate term. We're talking about whether the money exists to pay benefits here and now, not in the future.)

2 Comments in Response to Social Security is Not At Risk On Debt Ceiling

Comment by Winsmith

Entered on: 7/14/2011 2:48:53 PM

I have a newspaper clipping that says: Social Security will collapse in 1983.

There is nothiing there but numbers; They can give every retiree a check for 1 Million without raising taxes. The problem comes when the people spend it and cause prices to explode.

I have a solution for Social Security that was publisged in 1982: "Doubling the rate that water is fluoridated should see to it that more people expire before they retire. Tripling it should see to it that nobody retires. Take a pound of fluoride today and stop aging tomorrow. Give a pound to each of your kids and they will never grow old. Fo4 15 years, the professionals at the EPA have been telling the world that fluoride is killing people. Search: nteu fluoride

Comment by Lucky Red

Entered on: 7/14/2011 5:14:23 AM

Social Security is not at risk on debt ceiling? Whew! I feel soooooooooooo much better now. For a minute there, I was worried that they had actually taken our retirement money and blown it on things like wars of choices and bail outs of the rich but, hey! I trust my government. I know they would never, ever do that to us. To them, we the people come first.

~snicker, snicker, snicker~

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