- Title Pages
- Dedication
- List of Figures
- List of Tables
- Preface and Acknowledgments
- I Foundations and Fault Lines
- 1 Retirement USA
- 2 Early Motivations behind the Pension Movement
- II Social Security: The Dream and Reality
- 3 Development and Passage of the Social Security Act
- 4 Early Concerns Prove Nagging and Persistent
- 5 Moving to Pay-as-You-Go Financing
- 6 A Deal Too Good to Last
- 7 Operations under Pay-As-You-Go Financing
- 8 Crisis and Reactions
- 9 Sorting Out the Trust Fund Semantics and Realities
- 10 Policy Stalemate at the Demographic Divide
- 11 Understanding Social Security in Modern Times
- III Employer-Based Pension Provision
- 12 Employer Pensions Taking Root
- 13 Growing Pains for Private Retirement Plans
- 14 ERISA
- 15 The 1980s
- 16 Good Intentions Gone Awry
- 17 Some Good News … or Not
- 18 The Unfolding of a Predictable Defined Benefit Surprise
- 19 And Then, A Predictable Defined Contribution Surprise
- 20 Public Pensions
- IV Delivering Benefits and Providing Retirement Security
- 21 Retirement Income Security and Workers’ Residuals
- 22 End Game
- 23 We’ve Killed the Goose, Let’s Gild the Eggs
- 24 Tax Benefits and Benefit Taxes
- 25 Retiree Health Benefits
- V Truth and Consequences
- 26 The Fellow behind the Tree
- 27 Securing the Social Security Foundation
- 28 Securing Tax-Favored Benefits and Living Standards
- 29 Remembering the Future
- Glossary
- Index
Policy Stalemate at the Demographic Divide
Policy Stalemate at the Demographic Divide
- Chapter:
- (p.102) 10 Policy Stalemate at the Demographic Divide
- Source:
- The Predictable Surprise
- Author(s):
Sylvester J. Schieber
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
This chapter examines the policies of Bill Clinton and George W. Bush concerning Social Security. The 1994–1996 Advisory Council on Social Security appointed by Clinton came up with a single set of marginal recommendations to keep the existing structure standing. Among the issues considered by the council were the adequacy of retirement benefits and equity for people at different ages and income levels, as well as in various family patterns. Before he became president, Clinton had helped organize and lead the Democratic Leadership Council (DLC) to develop centrist analyses of various social problems and solutions to resolve them. The DLC would be vital in any Clinton effort to move forward on Social Security reform. In early 1998, Clinton launched a year-long, bipartisan national conversation about America’s aging population and Social Security financing. When Bush took over, his conclusions about Social Security were similar to those reached by Clinton, suggesting the possibility of common ground for Republicans and Democrats.
Keywords: retirement benefits, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Social Security, Democratic Leadership Council, reform, financing, Republicans, Democrats
Oxford Scholarship Online requires a subscription or purchase to access the full text of books within the service. Public users can however freely search the site and view the abstracts and keywords for each book and chapter.
Please, subscribe or login to access full text content.
If you think you should have access to this title, please contact your librarian.
To troubleshoot, please check our FAQs , and if you can't find the answer there, please contact us .
- Title Pages
- Dedication
- List of Figures
- List of Tables
- Preface and Acknowledgments
- I Foundations and Fault Lines
- 1 Retirement USA
- 2 Early Motivations behind the Pension Movement
- II Social Security: The Dream and Reality
- 3 Development and Passage of the Social Security Act
- 4 Early Concerns Prove Nagging and Persistent
- 5 Moving to Pay-as-You-Go Financing
- 6 A Deal Too Good to Last
- 7 Operations under Pay-As-You-Go Financing
- 8 Crisis and Reactions
- 9 Sorting Out the Trust Fund Semantics and Realities
- 10 Policy Stalemate at the Demographic Divide
- 11 Understanding Social Security in Modern Times
- III Employer-Based Pension Provision
- 12 Employer Pensions Taking Root
- 13 Growing Pains for Private Retirement Plans
- 14 ERISA
- 15 The 1980s
- 16 Good Intentions Gone Awry
- 17 Some Good News … or Not
- 18 The Unfolding of a Predictable Defined Benefit Surprise
- 19 And Then, A Predictable Defined Contribution Surprise
- 20 Public Pensions
- IV Delivering Benefits and Providing Retirement Security
- 21 Retirement Income Security and Workers’ Residuals
- 22 End Game
- 23 We’ve Killed the Goose, Let’s Gild the Eggs
- 24 Tax Benefits and Benefit Taxes
- 25 Retiree Health Benefits
- V Truth and Consequences
- 26 The Fellow behind the Tree
- 27 Securing the Social Security Foundation
- 28 Securing Tax-Favored Benefits and Living Standards
- 29 Remembering the Future
- Glossary
- Index
