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Bobby Jindal on Social Security
Republican Governor; previously Representative (LA-1)
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Supported privatization & reform, early & enthusiastically
Jindal was for entitlement reform when entitlement reform wasn't cool. In fact, his introduction to Washington was as staff director of
Senator Phil Gramm's bipartisan commission on Medicare, which developed one of the earliest premium-support plans for the program.
Jindal was an enthusiastic backer of George W. Bush's plan for personal accounts for Social Security. As governor, Jindal has slowed state spending, but still faces a
$1.6 billion state budget shortfall brought on in part by falling oil revenue. He can claim, however, that Louisiana is one of the few states to see its credit consistently upgraded throughout his tenure.
Source: National Review 2015 coverage of 2016 presidential hopefuls
, Feb 11, 2015
Supports Bush's proposal for personal retirement accounts
Pres. Bush proposed that workers born in 1950 or after would have the option of putting some of the money they now pay in Social Security taxes into voluntary personal accounts. A worker who earns $60,000 a year pays $3,720 a year in Social Security
taxes. Under Bush's redesign, that worker could divert up to about $2,455 a year into a personal retirement account.Rep. Bobby Jindal praised Bush for offering specifics. "The administration has a lot more work to do to continue educating the
American people about the very serious challenges facing Social Security. I think today was a great first step; I think more work needs to be done."
One pending question: If workers are rerouting some of their Social Security tax payments into personal
retirement accounts, how will the system pay for retiree benefits? Jindal said, "We're not creating one additional dollar of deficit spending by doing this. These transition costs, all they are really doing is recognizing a debt that exists today."
Source: NBC News on 2005 State of the Union speech
, Feb 3, 2005
Page last updated: Mar 12, 2016