News flash. Social Security and many of the other “off the books net obligations” are not “owed” in any typical financial or legal understanding of the terms. They are politically determined payouts that can be reduced or even ended at the will of the politicians or voters. The lefties are getting slick about running up obligations and then claiming their promises are a binding and obligation. Just see the posts on FR calling SS an intergenerational sacred obligation.
Then again even sovereign debt obligations may not be airtight.
See the words of Jefferson for a good explanation as to what obligations succeeding generations are under for repaying the debt of previous generations.
Correct.
In Fleming vs. Nestor the Supreme Court ruled:
“... that workers have no legally binding contractual rights to their Social Security benefits, and that those benefits can be cut or even eliminated at any time.
To engraft upon the Social Security system a concept of ‘accrued property rights’ would deprive it of the flexibility and boldness in adjustment to ever changing conditions which it demands.” The Court went on to say, “It is apparent that the non-contractual interest of an employee covered by the [Social Security] Act cannot be soundly analogized to that of the holder of an annuity, whose right to benefits is bottomed on his contractual premium payments.”
In an earlier case Helvering vs. Davis (1937) the Court ruled:
“...Social Security was not a contributory insurance program, saying, “The proceeds of both the employee and employer taxes are to be paid into the Treasury like any other internal revenue generally, and are not earmarked in any way.”
In other words, Social Security is not an insurance program at all. It is simply a payroll tax on one side and a welfare program on the other. Your Social Security benefits are always subject to the whim of 535 politicians in Washington. Congress has cut Social Security benefits in the past and is likely to do so in the future. In fact, given Social Security’s financial crisis, benefit cuts are almost inevitable.
But 98% of Social Security Disability is an entitlement - a corruption that's become the 'new welfare' without the pesky social workers. Almost all of that can be abolished.
There's thousands of ‘programs’ that are designed to ONLY benefit pet victim groups of liberal elites.
Those can be cut to the bone... along with things like much wasted on the UN, money used to defend places like Germany - NATO Scam Cash, money to countries that dump their people here, parasites at the State Department. corrupt dirty cops at the FBI, the list is almost endless... So many places to cut... so much money to save.