Editorial: It’s official: Bush wrong

Monday, March 28, 2005 | 9:08 a.m.

The next time President Bush wonders why his plan for privatized retirement accounts is losing ground, he might want to go to the official Web site of the U.S. Social Security Administration. Toward the top, browsers can click on a drop-down menu, select "Taxes and Social Security," and get answers to 27 questions.

Question 16 asks: "I think I could do better if you let me invest the Social Security I pay into an Individual Retirement Plan or some other investment plan. What do you think?"

The Social Security Administration answers:

" ... Remember these facts: Your Social Security taxes pay for potential disability and survivors benefits as well as for retirement accounts. Social Security incorporates social goals -- such as giving more protection to families and to low-income workers -- that are not part of private pension plans. And Social Security benefits are adjusted yearly for increases in the cost of living -- a feature not present in many private plans."

There we have, in concise -- and official -- words, the best reasons for opposing Bush's privatization plan. The question and answers were reported last week by The New York Times. The paper asked a White House spokesman if the passage would be changed. "That's up to the Social Security Administration," the spokesman said.

All the same, we won't be surprised if Question 16, someday soon, is quietly updated.