Social Security Alert: Privatizers Jesse Kelly and John Boehner Celebrate at The Ritz
AZ-08: Social Security Alert: Privatizers Jesse Kelly and John Boehner Celebrate at The Ritz
Kelly welcomes fellow Privatizer who leads “tight circle” of Wall Street lobbyists
Jesse Kelly welcomes Washington, D.C. lobbyist magnet John Boehner to Marana today for a fundraising luncheon at the Ritz-Carlton. As Republican leader, Boehner has promised to “get serious” about privatizing Social Security. As reported recently in the New York Times, Boehner “maintains especially tight ties with a circle of lobbyists and former aides representing some of the nation’s biggest businesses,” including Wall Street banks whose greed and abuses led to the financial crisis. (New York Times, 9/11/10.)
Privatizing Social Security would open new avenues for profits by Wall Street firms–and both Boehner and Kelly are committed to Wall Street. Jesse Kelly has called to “privatize” Social Security, in order to “phase it out.” Recently, he has promised to “protect it,” in order to hide his dangerous ideas from Southern Arizona voters.
Social Security will pay a big price under Boehner and his Wall Street friends. He has promised to privatize Social Security, saying, “If I’m around in a leadership role come January, we’re going to get serious about it.” (Washington Times, 7/31/06.) He even signed a letter to the President’s Commission to Strengthen Social Security urging for privatization of the program. (Letter to The Social Security Reform Commission, 5/24/01.)
Jesse Kelly’s plans for Social Security are even more devastating for our seniors than Boehner’s. Kelly has said, “…we must take steps to privatize [Social Security]” and to “phase it out.” (Arizona Illustrated – KUAT Debate, 7/30/2010, 46:35.)
Medicare would be another casualty of Boehner’s Wall Street agenda. He voted for a plan that “called for eventually replacing the traditional Medicare program with subsidies… [for] private health care plans.” (AP, 4/2/09, 4/03/09; H CON RES 85, #191, 4/2/09.)
Kelly says seniors on Medicare need to “get off the public dole” and supports eliminating the program. (Tucson Weekly, 12/2/2009.)
Kelly has also called for eliminating all corporate income taxes and the minimum wage. And yesterday Kelly confirmed what even Boehner has waffled on: he would hold middle class tax cuts hostage during these tough economic times in order to demand yet another tax cut for millionaires. (Garrett Lewis Show, 9/15/10.)
“Anyone who has to go out and work for a living should be very frightened today,” said Giffords for Congress campaign manager Rodd McLeod. “Both Boehner and Jesse Kelly are committed to tilting the tax code even further toward corporations and the rich at the expense of the middle class. Whether it’s ‘phasing out’ Social Security, ‘eliminating’ the minimum wage or getting rid of all taxes on corporations forever, Jesse Kelly’s dangerous ideas just don’t add up for the middle class.“
John Boehner is the latest ambassador in a string of Social Security privatizers supporting Kelly. Last month, Americans for Prosperity, the political slush fund of oil-billionaire and Social Security privatization advocate David Koch, launched attack ads against Giffords. The 60-Plus Association, another group dedicated to privatizing Social Security, is currently running smear ads against Giffords.
Gabrielle Giffords is a third generation Southern Arizonan and the only person in Congress with an active duty military spouse. Gabrielle is not like other politicians. She takes an independent view on the issues and was rated Arizona’s most moderate member of Congress by the National Journal in 2009. She’s voted against a Congressional pay raise every time one has come up, and she doesn’t make earmark requests for campaign contributors. Most importantly, Gabrielle stands up for Southern Arizona by working across the aisle to secure the border, protect our military and veterans and create jobs by investing in solar energy.
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