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Patty Murray on Social Security

Democratic Sr Senator (WA)

 


No comment on raising retirement age or other changes, yet

Both candidates refused to say whether they'd back raising the Social Security retirement age or other changes to the entitlement. They each pointed to a bipartisan commission studying the issue, saying they wanted to read that report before making any promises.
Source: Seattle Times coverage of 2010 WA Senate debate , Oct 17, 2010

Tax cuts for the millionaires are raiding Social Security

MURRAY: Social Security is a promise from one generation to the next. It says if you work hard in this country, you will not be living in poverty when you retire. The biggest threat to the security of that system today is the $425 billion deficit that we are running today. Nethercutt just talked about tax cuts. I support targeted tax cuts that bring relief to middle-income families. The massive tax cuts that he has supported-50% goes to people making over $1 million a year-comes right out of that Social Security trust fund. Seniors won’t be able to count on that if we continue to raid that Social Security Trust Fund.

NETHERCUTT: Murray says that I want to privatize Social Security. She is trying to scare people on Social Security. She voted six times for higher taxes on Social Security recipients. Payroll taxes pay for Social Security. If you want to have payroll taxes, you want to have jobs. If you have jobs, you entrust the economy to the small-business economy, not increasing government spending.

Source: WA Senate Debate , Oct 20, 2004

Voted NO on establishing reserve funds & pre-funding for Social Security.

Voting YES would:
  1. require that the Federal Old Age and Survivors Trust Fund be used only to finance retirement income of future beneficiaries;
  2. ensure that there is no change to benefits for individuals born before January 1, 1951
  3. provide participants with the benefits of savings and investment while permitting the pre-funding of at least some portion of future benefits; and
  4. ensure that the funds made available to finance such legislation do not exceed the amounts estimated to be actuarially available.

Proponents recommend voting YES because:

Perhaps the worst example of wasteful spending is when we take the taxes people pay for Social Security and, instead of saving them, we spend them on other things. Even worse than spending Social Security on other things is we do not count it as debt when we talk about the deficit every year. So using the Social Security money is actually a way to hide even more wasteful spending without counting it as debt. This Amendment would change that.

Opponents recommend voting NO because:

This amendment has a fatal flaw. It leaves the door open for private Social Security accounts by providing participants with the option of "pre-funding of at least some portion of future benefits."

Make no mistake about it, this is a stalking-horse for Social Security. It looks good on the surface, but this is an amendment to privatize Social Security.
Reference: Bill S.Amdt.489 on S.Con.Res.21 ; vote number 2007-089 on Mar 22, 2007

Voted NO on Social Security Lockbox & limiting national debt.

This vote limited debate on the amendment offered by Sen. Abraham (R-MI) that would have created a Social Security "lockbox" and establish limits on the public debt. [A YES vote was for a lockbox]. This vote failed because 3/5 of the Senate did not vote.
Status: Cloture Motion Rejected Y)54; N)45; NV)1
Reference: Motion to invoke cloture on Amdt #254 to S. 557; Bill S. 557 ; vote number 1999-90 on Apr 22, 1999

Voted NO on allowing Roth IRAs for retirees.

Senator Roth (R-DE) offered this amendment to the IRS Restructuring and Reform Act to allow people older than 70.5 with incomes over $100,000 to move funds from an Individual Retirement Account into a Roth IRA.
Status: Amdt Agreed to Y)56; N)42; NV)2
Reference: Roth Amdt #2339; Bill H.R. 2676 ; vote number 1998-120 on May 6, 1998

Voted NO on allowing personal retirement accounts.

Vote on an amendment expressing the sense of the Senate that the Finance Committee should consider legislation to use the federal budget surplus to establish personal retirement accounts as a supplement to Social Security.
Reference: Bill S.Con.Res.86 ; vote number 1998-56 on Apr 1, 1998

Voted NO on deducting Social Security payments on income taxes.

Vote on an amendment to establish an income tax deduction for Social Security taxes paid by employees and the self-employed.
Reference: Bill S Con Res 57 ; vote number 1996-140 on May 22, 1996

Rated 90% by the ARA, indicating a pro-senior voting record.

Murray scores 90% by the ARA on senior issues

The mission of the Alliance for Retired Americans is to ensure social and economic justice and full civil rights for all citizens so that they may enjoy lives of dignity, personal and family fulfillment and security. The Alliance believes that all older and retired persons have a responsibility to strive to create a society that incorporates these goals and rights and that retirement provides them with opportunities to pursue new and expanded activities with their unions, civic organizations and their communities.

The following ratings are based on the votes the organization considered most important; the numbers reflect the percentage of time the representative voted the organization's preferred position.

Source: ARA website 03n-ARA on Dec 31, 2003

Rated 95% by ARA, indicating a pro-Trust Fund stance.

Murray scores 95% Alliance for Retired Americans

Scoring system for 2014: Ranges from 0% (supports privatization and other market-based reforms) to 100% (supports keeping federal control over Trust Fund and Social Security system).

About ARA (from their website, www.RetiredAmericans.org):

The Alliance for Retired Americans is a nationwide organization, founded in May 2001, with now over 4.2 million members working together to make their voices heard in the laws, policies, politics, and institutions that shape our lives. The mission of the Alliance for Retired Americans is to ensure social and economic justice and full civil rights for all citizens so that they may enjoy lives of dignity, personal and family fulfillment and security.

Source: ARA lifetime rating on incumbents of 113th Congress 14_ARA on Jan 1, 2013

Endorsed Endorsed by NCPSSM for protecting Social Security and Medicare.

Murray is endorsed by National Committe to Preserve Social Security and Medicare

76 Congressional candidates in 2022 were endorsed and/or supported by the NCPSSM PAC. The mission of the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare, a membership organization, is to protect, preserve, promote, and ensure the financial security, health, and the well being of current and future generations of maturing Americans.

NCPSSM was founded in 1982 to serve as an advocate for the landmark federal programs of Social Security and Medicare and for all Americans who seek a healthy, productive and secure retirement. With millions of members and supporters across America, we are the nation's second-largest grassroots citizens organization devoted to the retirement future for all citizens -- from our "20-something" generation and baby-boomers to the nation's 34 million seniors.

Source: NCPSSM PAC endorsements 2022NCPSSM on Jun 24, 2022

Other candidates on Social Security: Patty Murray on other issues:
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Bill Bryant
Jay Inslee
Loren Culp
Phil Fortunato
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Dave Strider
Jennifer Ferguson
Maria Cantwell
Mike Luke
Susan Hutchison

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