February 3, 2005
Last night in his State of the Union address, President Bush again asked Congress to reform social security.
Most democrats are reluctant. So are some republicans.
Many liberals want you to rely on government for a monthly check after retirement, though that check is nothing more than pocket money in today's economy.
The president wants to create what he calls an "ownership society" in which you control your future.
The late Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan once observed, liberals are reluctant to change social security because they worry that wealth will turn democrats into republicans.
Moynihan meant it as a joke, but its essence is true.
Social security was created in the depression when few people had prospects for creating wealth.
Much has changed since then, but not social security.
The president is right to change it and to reform other entitlement programs, like Medicare.
But this is about power and politics.
Keep that in mind as you listen to the debate.
I'm Cal Thomas in Washington.
Cal Thomas is a nationally syndicated columnist based in Washington, D.C. Watch his television show, After Hours with Cal Thomas, on the Fox News Channel, Saturdays at 11 p.m. Eastern Time.
