2016 Vice-Presidential Debate: on Social Security

Donald Trump: FactCheck: Yes, "privatization would be good for all of us"

"The solution to the Great Social Security crisis couldn't be more obvious: Allow every American to dedicate some portion of their payroll taxes to a personal Social Security account that they could own and invest in stocks and bonds. Federal guidelines would make sure that your money is diversified, that it is invested in sound mutual funds or bond funds, and not in emu ranches....Privatization would be good for all of us. Directing Social Security funds into personal accounts invested in real assets would swell national savings, pumping hundreds of billions of dollars into jobs and the economy." (Source: The America We Deserve, by Donald Trump, p.198-199 & 203 , July 2000)

Mike Pence: We're going to meet our obligations to our seniors

PENCE: Well, there they go again.

KAINE: Go read the book And when Congressman Pence was in Congress, he was the chief cheerleader for the privatization of Social Security. Even after President Bush stopped pushing for it, Congressman Pence kept pushing for it. We're going to stand up against efforts to privatize Social Security. And we'll look for ways to keep it solvent going forward, focusing primarily on the payroll tax cap.

PENCE: All Donald Trump and I have said about Social Security is we're going to meet our obligations to our seniors. That's it.

KAINE: Go read the book.

Mike Pence: We will keep promises to seniors

Tim Kaine: Never, ever risk Social Security with privatization

KAINE: First, we're going to protect Social Security, which is one of the greatest programs that the American government has ever done. It happened at a time when you would work your whole life, raising your kids, working, and then you would retire into poverty. And Social Security has enabled people to retire with dignity and overwhelmingly not be in poverty. We have to keep it solvent. And we will keep it solvent. And we'll look for strategies like adjusting the payroll tax cap upward in order to do that. Here's what Hillary and I will not do: We will never, ever engage in a risky scheme to privatize Social Security. Donald Trump wrote a book and said Social Security is a Ponzi scheme and privatization would be good for all of us.

PENCE: Well, , there they go again.

KAINE: Go read the book!