To ‘cut’ the ‘entitlement mentality,’ Rep. Kingston touts privatizing Social Security and Medicare.

In the past two weeks, Republican lawmakers have revived the prospect of privatizing Social Security and Medicare, starting with a push from Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI), whose budget proposal radically slashes and privatizes the entitlement programs. On Tuesday night, Rep. Jack Kingston (R-GA) went on Fox Business to lend his voice to the campaign. Kingston said to “cut…programs that are expanding the entitlement mentality,” we should privatize both Social Security and Medicare:

KINGSTON: We need to go in, and we need to cut duplicate programs, programs that are inefficient, programs that are expanding the entitlement mentality. I think we should go back to Social Security, take it off budget, dedicate the funds, put personal accounts on it. On Medicare, I think something like vouchers, where people actually have an incentive to save money.

Watch it:

http://thinkprogress.org/2010/02/11/kingston-privatize-entitlements/

Go cut your own throat, Kingston, and raise the taxes to pay back that money you "borrowed" and spent on fruitless, illegal wars and weaponry and bailing out Wall Street, and all the other corporate welfare.

been saving for 40 years. What silver spoon was he born sucking?

Just what kind of society do these Rethuglicans want? I know - a tiny percentage to rule the rest of us, and gated communities.

Oh yeah thats right cons, they are still trying to make Hoovers mess a success, never mind.

Congress does such a bang-up job passing legislation from one house to the other without really making laws, let's start with a big fat salary cut. If we're not entitled, why are they?

We'll: pay them 3 times minimum-wage (which is twice what they're worth),
fiscally conservative insurance benefits while they serve (complete with spouse surcharge).
Bottled tans, face-lifts and nasal whining are pre-existing condition & require higher premiums.
They have to buy their paint, crayons & poster supplies with a pre-approved purchase order.
Voucher for lunches at the nearest Weeny Wagon (no appetizers,desserts or beer).
No pensions when they get arrested, or voted out, but if they serve 2 terms they get a cheap watch.
25 Personal days a year they can take how they want, otherwise they don't get paid & no snow days.

That should save a bundle every year!

:patriot:

I might tweak a few of your points, but you are pretty much right on.....

but it's the entitlement to multimillion dollar bonuses for executives, constantly increasing paper net worth to billionaires, the entitlement to exemption from taxes the rich have, the entitlement to empire building the rich and corporate have, and the entitlement that says they're a species apart from the rest of us and must be held in reverence.

We will have to make men like Kingston afraid of us before that's going to happen, though.

:toast:

C'mon Barrack!!!

For the love of all that is good and holy already NAIL THESE BASTARDS TO A TREE!!!!

Privatize Social Security? After what we have just gone through (and not even come CLOSE to recovering from)?

Here's a little helpful hint for you - free of charge - CALL THEM OUT ON THIS LOUDLY AND CONSTANTLY LIKE A FREAKING DRUMLINE!!!

Go on EVERY media outlet in the country and put them on 24/7 blast about even floating this idea as a trial balloon. Tell Americans that under Republican ideas, there would be no government to administer a social safety net anymore. Instead, you would get to give all of your retirement money to millionaire Wall Street banksters and when they lost it all (or more appropriately STOLE it all), you would be left to survive on god's good humor!

If you need a sound clip, 'death-panels'-esque catch phrase for this, try out something like this:

- We support the rights of all Americans to receive their Social Security benefits and protections, not the rights of all Americans to lose
their Private Security benefits in the next market bubble.

(Too long? Too in-depth for a sound-bite? then shorten it up .... 'I will not allow the Republican Party to sell the American people's retirement accounts to the lowest bidder.' or 'We will not have financial death panels in this country. I will not allow corporate bureaucrats to decide your retirement.')

Make them defend this idea on every outlet (excluding their echo-chamber on Fox of course).
Hit them hard and keep hitting them.
Make shit up if thats what it takes. (Hell, LEARN from your own past...defending against made up shit only makes the person defending look bad in today's soundbite culture! Call them names, too! Fight fire WITH fire and stop looking for the Asbestos-blanket already!)
Start calling them 'financial death panels' that would be run by corporations that could steal your benefits under a lot of 'fancy lawyer talk' and an avalanche of corporate spending in election campaigns.

There is precious little time to do this...by the summer, corporate spending on elections is going to spiral out of control.
The only person remaining with the power to project a message against the corporations is the President.

Do this Mr. President. Do it now, or be forever remembered as the man at the helm who allowed the nation to sink instead of bringing the ship home to a safe harbor...

He does NOT listen to his constituents, either.

A shame Obama agrees with Rep. Kingston. Medicare will almost certainly be destroyed if the Obama mandate bill passes, since it raids the medicare budget to the tune of $500 billion. Sickening.

Perhaps Ryan and Kingston would like to give up their own personal 'entitlement' program of government provided health care for them and their families that they will be 'entitled' to forever and ever. Hypocrisy at its finest.........