President Bush (search), on the first leg of an intensified push for a Social Security (search) overhaul that faces daunting challenges, said the government retirement system's long-standing problems urgently need fixing.
"Very soon, in a very quick period of time, as a matter of fact in 2018, the money going out exceeds the money coming in to Social Security," Bush said before thousands of mostly hand-picked supporters. "Now 2018, some people say that's pretty far down the road. ... We're talking about right around the corner when you think about it. Those of us in public office must look down the road."
Part of Bush's plan involves allowing younger workers to set up personal retirement accounts with a portion of Social Security taxes, and the president said the interest from those accounts would be in addition to — not instead of — the traditional benefit check. He did not mention that future retirees' government checks would be lower as a result.
But, as President Bush continues the push to reform Social Security, Democrats are digging in their heals in opposition. Can common ground be reached? We'll have an exclusive interview with Dan Bartlett, counselor to the president, and House Minority Leader Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.
Plus, now that Martha Stewart has done her time, what’s next for the domestic diva? We'll ask Donald Trump (search), chairman and president of The Trump Organization.
And, we'll get powerful political punditry from Brit Hume, FOX News Washington managing editor; Mara Liasson of National Public Radio; Paul Gigot of The Wall Street Journal, and Nina Easton of The Boston Globe.
You can reach our Power Player of the Week, Robert R. Barron, at:
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