They’re not even trying to hide their “plans”
WASHINGTON ― Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent touted new savings accounts for American babies included in President Donald Trump's recently approved mega bill as a "backdoor for privatizing Social Security."
Bessent on July 30 hailed so-called "Trump accounts" for American newborns that passed in Trump's "Big, Beautiful Bill" as an innovative way to get more Americans to take part in the financial system, increase financial literacy and build their retirement savings.
Under the program, American children born this year through 2028 are eligible for a one-time $1,000 contribution from the federal government per toddler into a mutual fund or index fund that is tied to the performance of the stock market.
"In a way, it is a backdoor way for privatizing Social Security," Bessent said, speaking at a policy event hosted by the conservative outlet Breitbart News. "Social Security is a defined benefit plan paid out ‒ that to the extent that if all of a sudden these accounts grow, and you have in the hundreds of thousands of dollars for your retirement, that's a game-changer."
Always, always, always follow the money. This isn’t about maintaining/improving the safety net for seniors and the disabled; it’s about skimming fees from social insurance you paid for into the pockets of Wall Street profiteers.
Let’s be clear – if someone has the funds to invest AND wants to take the risks required to potentially receive a higher return, they don’t need the government (via Social Security or so-called “Trump Accounts”) to do it for them. They can go to Robinhoood or Schwab and do it themselves – fee free! The ONLY reason to have the gov run our money through Wall Street is to pad donors’ coffers.
When I chaired a quasi-governmental water/sewer district, the district was only allowed to deposit and invest our funds in government insured entities (banks, Treasuries, etc.). Because the idea was not to maximize return by assuming higher risk; it was to earn a safe return without risking constituents’ money needed by the District to operate. It’s no different for Social Security.
MESSAGING: Tell your electeds we don’t need to pay fees to Wall Street profiteers to make risky investments, and maximizing return by increasing risk is not why Social Security exists
