Currently, Social Security runs a surplus, which is held in a trust fund. According to the Social Security Administration, the trust fund holds money that is not needed to pay current benefits. By law, the money must be invested in Treasury bonds, which are guaranteed by the U.S. government...The only way for Social Security to go bankrupt would be for the government to default on the bonds held by the trust fund or to monkey with payroll withholdings. It is, in fact, Congress' willingness to act in the wrong direction that poses the greatest threat to Social Security. And, like all defenders of the Social Security status quo, he ignores the implications of what he has said. The trust fund was created to avoid a massive tax hike or borrowing binge to cover the cost of Boomers entering the system. Well, to redeem those trust fund notes, what will the government have to do? Raise taxes ... or borrow money. So the trust fund has failed to accomplish the purpose for which it was created - and should therefore be treated as a non-entity in this debate.