The ongoing wild card in the Social Security fight remains skeptical congressional Republicans. In early December, it was Rep. Tom Davis of Virginia, former chairman of the House Republican campaign committee, who said he knows of about 30 House Republicans, including him, who are already inclined to oppose Bush’s Social Security plan. A week ago, it was Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), one of the chamber’s most enthusiastic supporters of privitization, who believes Bush’s approach is misguided and, as he put it, “irresponsible.”
So, before Bush hits the campaign trail to deceive regular Americans, he might want to rethink his lobbying strategy among Republicans on Capitol Hill.
For President Bush to succeed in his drive to let workers put part of their Social Security taxes in private investment accounts, he’ll have to persuade Republicans like Rep. Ray LaHood to vote for it, and that will take some doing.
“It’s a no-win for people in the House,” the moderate, 10-year House veteran from rural Illinois said recently. “We risk our political careers. We risk 30-second ads against you saying, ‘You voted to gut Social Security.'”
For decades, undermining Social Security has been a “third rail” for lawmakers; for many on both sides, it still is.
This also plays into the point Bush raised indirectly during his press conference the other day. Bush wants to privatize Social Security and add $2 trillion to the debt, but he wants Congress to do all the heavy lifting. Indeed, the president sounds as if he won’t even present his own proposal on the issue, preferring to let Republicans on the Hill do the work for him.
Asked how the scheme might work, Bush said, “I don’t get to write the law.” Asked about his priorities, Bush said, “[T]he law will be written in the halls of Congress.” About any semblance of detail, Bush said, “Well, again, I will repeat. Don’t bother to ask me.”
As far Bush is concerned, Congress will simply take up this initiative at his urging. If there’s significant Republican skepticism, coupled by reasonably unified Dem opposition, the president will have to do more than throw up his hands and say, “Who, me?”
Bush’s numbers don’t add up, Congress knows Bush’s numbers don’t add up, and with yet another election cycle in 2006, even Republicans won’t follow Bush off a cliff if they think he’ll pin the blame on this debacle on them.
Dems like to say that the buck stops with Bush. If the White House scheme to kill Social Security goes south, Dems won’t be the only ones saying it.