Friday, June 5, 2015

Sanders slams Jeb Bush over Social Security remarks

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) on Wednesday slammed former Gov. Jeb Bush’s (R-Fla.) recent comments about raising the retirement age for Social Security.

Bush suggested the age to get Social Security should be raised from 65 to 68 to 70.

“At a time when more than half of the American people have less than $10,000 in savings, it would be a disaster to cut Social Security benefits by raising the retirement age,” the Democratic presidential candidate replied in a statement.

“It is unacceptable to ask construction workers, truck drivers, nurses and other working-class Americans to work until they are 68 to 70 years old before qualifying for full Social Security benefits,” added Sanders, who has pushed to expand Social Security benefits.

Bush called for a hike in the retirement age in an interview with CBS News’s “Face the Nation.”

“I think it needs to be phased in over an extended period of time,” Bush said. “We need to look over the horizon and begin to phase in, over an extended period of time, going from 65 to 68 or 70. ... And that, by itself, will help sustain the retirement system for anybody under the age of 40.”

Bush, who is exploring a presidential bid, also said he would be open to slashing benefits for wealthy people and their beneficiaries.

“I think it ought to be considered, for sure,” Bush said.

“I have a hard time understanding what world Gov. Bush and his billionaire backers live in,” Sanders responded on Wednesday.

Read more at: http://thehill.com/policy/finance/243931-sanders-slams-jeb-over-social-security-remarks


Photo by Greg Nash


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