Reforming entitlements to ensure they are around for younger Americans was the order of the day for GOP vice presidential nominee Rep. Paul Ryan Saturday afternoon during his Google+ Hangout with Americans across the country.
Europe has set a precedent because young people find themselves coming out of school without any opportunities or jobs on one end of the age spectrum, while crushing debt has led to the drastic cutting of benefits for retirees on the other end, according to Ryan.
Not only that, they are also having to hike taxes and are slowing down their economies in an effort to tackle their debt.
“What we’re trying to do is tell the American people about the real fiscal situation that we have and get ahead of it and fix this problem before it gets out of control,” Ryan said, referring to the crises in Medicare and Social Security. “If we do it now then we can make sure that people who are retired or are within 10 years of retirement see now changes.
“That way they see no change in their benefits, so that the promises that government made to them and that they are organizing their retirements around are fulfilled promises.”
Ryan, a member of Gen-X, which like the Millennials likely will never see a dime of Social Security or Medicare, said change is needed to ensure the programs are around when young Americans retire.
The good news is that numerous bipartisan ideas exist to fix the system.
“Our goal is economic growth and prosperity – getting people back on the path to prosperity, getting people out of poverty and back into the middle class – and doing it now so we can prevent a debt crisis later like what is going on in Europe,” Ryan said. “If we stick with what President Obama’s promising, we’ll get the same results.”
About John Rossomando
No thanks, Rep Ryan. I would rather plan my own retirement savings and latter-years healthcare.