Last word from me. The only way you can redeem the IOUs from the SSTF is to pay SS benefits to make up the shortfall between revenue and payouts. The General Fund must come up with the money whether thru borrowing or cutting spending. You don’t seem to understand what the CBO is saying about trust funds. Cheers and good luck.
Well, your last word is actually a new point that I’d hoped to get to next.
You state that the ONLY way you can redeem the IOUs (non-public debt) from the Trust Fund is to pay benefits to make up for a shortfall of revenues.
To do what I’m discussing, they would have to have the discretion to pay ALL of the benefits by redeeming the IOUs, as you call them, while diverting the current tax receipts to to pay other expenses.
Not sure that could be done under current law, but current law can be changed...