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President Discusses Strengthening Social Security for Rural AmericaHopkinsville Christian County Conference and Convention CenterHopkinsville, Kentucky President's Remarks view In Focus: Social Security 2:30 P.M. CDT THE PRESIDENT: Thanks for the warm welcome. Please be seated.Thanks for the warm welcome. Glad I brought a little rain with me.(Laughter.) I'm honored to be here. I've got some friends -- just metthem, but some folks from the community here who want to discuss SocialSecurity with me and with you. It's a vital subject. But before I getthere, I do want to say a couple of things. First, it's such an honor to land at Fort Campbell, Kentucky.(Applause.) I say \"honor,\" because that base houses some of the finestmen and women our country have ever known. (Applause.) Men and women,and their families, who are making incredible sacrifices on behalf ofthe American people. They're doing some hard work to protect thecountry, and as they do that hard work, they're helping free people.We are laying the foundations for peace because more people are free inthe world. And I want to thank those of you who support the base.(Applause.) Freedom is on the march. I was proud to see that Laura has a greattrip overseas. She was advancing the freedom agenda, making it clearthat free societies are societies that honor women and welcome womeninto the daily lives of government and business. (Applause.) Shesends her best. She's become quite the comedian over the last coupleof weeks. (Laughter.) I love her dearly. She's a great First Ladyand a wonderful wife. (Applause.) I appreciate knowing your Governor. I want to thank GovernorFletcher for doing a fine job for the people of Kentucky. (Applause.)I know Congressman Ed Whitfield is traveling, but I think he sent hismom and dad here. Mr. and Mrs. Whitfield, thank you all for coming.There you are. Great to see you all. (Applause.) Tell Ed I wasasking about him. (Laughter.) I want to thank all the state and local officials who have joinedus today. I'm honored that you're here. I want to thank Mayor Liebefor being here. I want to thank those of you who serve in the citycouncils and county commissions, if that's what you call them here inKentucky. Thanks for serving. I want to tell you somebody else I met who's serving in anincredibly important way, and that is a fellow named Dr. JohnCotthoff. (Applause.) A couple of people have heard of him.(Laughter.) He came out to the -- to meet me at Air Force One. Everytime I stop at a place, I ask somebody who has volunteered in thecommunity to come out so I can herald volunteerism, so I can thank thisone person in this one case for his kindness. He's a doc. Heestablished a clinic in 1991, the St. Luke Free Clinic. He volunteershis time. He helps 4,000 working uninsured people get health care.He's an -- he's a soldier in the army of compassion. He's one of themillions of citizens in this country who have heard the universal callto love a neighbor just like you'd like to be loved yourself and arehelping this country, one person at a time. If you're a member of the army of compassion, I want to thank youfor joining John. If you want to serve our country, feed the hungry,find shelter for the homeless, love somebody, teach somebody to read,and you'll be making a huge contribution to America just like Dr. JohnCutthoff is. John, thank you for being here. I appreciate youcoming. (Applause.) Thank you, sir. We got a lot to do in Washington, D.C., and there's too muchpolitics up there. (Laughter.) Pure and simple. I'm calling onCongress to do a couple of important things. One of them is to makesure we're wise about how we spend your money. If the program doesn'twok we ought not to be spending money on it. (Applause.) I submitted a tough budget. Congress passed a tough budget and nowit's time for them to make sure they don't overspend when it comes timeto appropriating your money. (Applause.) We've got a plan to cut ourdeficit in half in five years, and if they're wise stewards with yourmoney, we will do that. Secondly, four years ago I submitted a strategy to the UnitedStates Congress to make us less dependent on foreign sources ofenergy. And we've had four years of debate. This is the year wherethey've got to stop debating an energy bill and pass an energy billthat will encourage conservation -- (applause) -- a bill that willencourage conservation, a bill that will modernize the electricitygrid, a bill that will spend money on clean coal technology -- we'vegot a lot of coal in America; we could use technology to make sure weburn it cleanly. We've got to explore for oil and gas inenvironmentally friendly ways. We've got to spend money to use ethanol-- so we can use ethanol and biodiesel. (Applause.) We've got a planthat will make us less dependent on foreign sources of energy. Listen, I understand people are paying higher prices at the gaspump. I know that you're paying that tax -- it's like a tax that goes-- that money, and it's up because we're dependent. And the moredependent you are on somebody else's energy, the more likely it isyou'll pay a higher price for it. And so I put a plan up there to getus to diversify away from the old habits and the old ways. The billpassed the House, it passed the Senate committee. It's now on thefloor of the United States Senate. For the sake of economic securityand national security, the Senate has got to get that bill passed; theHouse and Senate have got to reconcile their differences and get me abill I can sign by August of this year. (Applause.) I want to talk about Social Security. Franklin Roosevelt did asmart thing when he set up the Social Security system. There's a lotof people who depend upon their Social Security check. I suspectthere's a lot of people in this part of the world that depend on thatcheck. I want to start off by telling those of you in Kentucky who geta check now from Social Security, nothing is going to change for you.You're going to keep getting your check. I don't care what thepoliticians say. I don't care what the advertisers say, I don't carewhat the pamphleteers say, nothing changes for you. When you hear us talking about the Social Security system being introuble, people who are getting their check have got to understandyou're in good shape. It's the youngsters coming up who have a problemwith Social Security. And I'll tell you why -- (applause) -- let metell you why. A lot of us are getting ready to retire. We're calledbaby boomers. See, my retirement age happens to be in 2008. I reachedretirement age in 2008, which is a convenient year for me to retire.(Laughter.) And there's a lot of baby boomers, and we're living longerthan the previous generation. So you're beginning to get a sense ofthe new math. Baby boomers -- I think when we fully retire, it's goingto be about 73 million of us that the younger people are going to haveto pay for. Right now there's over -- a little over 40 millionretirees. So there's a whole lot of new retirees getting ready toretire soon who are living longer, which means younger folks are goingto keep paying into -- paying for us longer and longer. And we've been promised greater benefits. To complicate the problem for the younger generation of Americans,there are fewer people paying into the system for every retiree. In1950, there were about 16 workers for every retiree. Think aboutthat. So if the government made a promise, there was 16 of you thatwere able to divide up the promise. Today, there are 3.3 workers perretiree. Pretty soon there will be two workers per retiree. You got alot of people getting ready to retire who will be living longer,drawing greater benefits, with fewer people paying in the system. And we're paying into what's called a pay-as-you-go system. Now,that means you pay through payroll taxes, and we go ahead and spend.(Laughter.) We, of course, spend on retirement benefits. But that'snot all that Congress has been spending your payroll tax on. See, alot of people think they're sending their payroll taxes in and thegovernment holds the money for them, and when it comes to retire, youget your money back. That's now how it works. People are paying their payroll taxes; the beneficiaries arereceiving their benefits, and there's been money left over. And thatmoney has gone to government programs. And so all that's left in theSocial Security trust is a file cabinet full of IOUs. And when thoseIOUs come due, somebody has to pay for them either through reducedbenefits or greater taxes. The pay-as-you-go system is -- really isn't fair, if you thinkabout it. The government has said you're going to pay payroll taxesfor your retirement, but they've gone ahead and spent your money onother government programs. And as a result of the pay-as-you-gosystem, with more people retiring, in 2017, the system goes into thered. In other words, more benefits will be going out than payrolltaxes coming in. That makes sense. If you got fewer people paying inand more people retired, pretty soon it's going to catch up with you.And it does in 2017. That's not very far down the road. If you've got a six-year-oldchild, that's -- the system goes in the red when you're child starts todrive. That is if you -- you have driver's licenses at 18 here,Ernie Yes, 18. It was harrowing experience when our daughters -- 16,well, that's interesting, yes. (Laughter.) Let me know when they'reon the road. (Laughter.) And every year thereafter the system gets worse, because morepeople are getting benefits and they're living longer. In 2027, theamount of money coming in will be $200 billion less than the amount ofmoney going out. Every year it gets worse from 2017 on. In 2032, Ithink it is, $300 billion a year. In other words, we're piling up anunsustainable system for younger workers. You got younger workerspaying into a system that is going to go bankrupt in 2041, unless we dosomething about it. So I saw a problem. If you take an objective look at the math, youcan't help but see a problem. It's no problem for people who aregetting their check today. If you're getting your Social Security herein Kentucky, you don't have a problem. But if you've got a grandchild,you do a problem -- or at least that grandchild does. And so I decidedto put the issue up for discussion in Washington. I'll tell you why Idid. The job of the President is to confront problems, is to deal withproblems, not pass them on to future Presidents or future congresses.That's the job of the President of the United States. (Applause.) I suspect some in Washington wish I hadn't have brought it up,because some in Washington really don't want to deal with it. Butevery year we wait, we're saddling a younger generation with about $600billion in costs. I mean, it's conceivable if we don't do anythingthat the payroll tax will have to go to 18 percent in order to make --fulfill the promises for the baby boomers. And I don't think that'sfair to a younger generation of Americans, to not have politicalcourage and deal with the problem and pass on the problem to them. Ijust don't think it's right. And so I've been traveling the country, spending a lot of timetrying to impress the folks with two things right off the bat. One, wehave got a serious problem, and if we don't do anything about it, we'resaddling a young generation with a huge problem. And, two, if you getyour check, nothing is going to change. I keep saying that because Iunderstand the politics of Social Security -- if you don't want to getanything done, all you've got to do is go around the country trying toscare seniors. And then the seniors will say to the members of theCongress, please don't do anything. And so I'm going to spend a lot oftime convincing seniors nothing changes -- and convincing folks there'sa problem, because once the people realize there's a problem, then thenext question they ask to their elected representative is, we've got aproblem and I've sent you up to Washington to solve problems, and sowhat are you going to do about it See, instead of just sitting upthere, why don't you work with the Preside I also have a duty to lay out some ideas, and so I have done so. Ihave -- I have suggested the following principles: one, that futuregenerations should receive benefits equal to or greater than thebenefits enjoyed by today's seniors. That makes sense to say tosomebody who's paying in the payroll tax. If you're a youngster,you're paying in, the system ought to at least yield benefits equal toor greater than the baby boomers, for example. Secondly, I believe the system -- I know the system can be designedso that someone who works all their life does not retire into poverty.That seems to make sense. You got a lot of people working hard inAmerica and they're contributing to the Social Security system, andwhen they retire, they retire into poverty. To me, that's a systemthat is a flawed system. And so, therefore, I supported an idea,what's called progressive indexing. That's long Washington words forthis: Right now benefits rise at the rate of wage increases. And so Iproposed that the poor Americans, those at the lower end of the incomescale, have their benefits continue to rise with wages; and that theupper-income folks have their benefits rise with inflation. In otherwords, all benefits go up, one set of benefits faster than others. And if we're able to implement that plan, that solves a significantportion of the solvency issue for Social Security. Just think aboutthat. By slowing down the rate of benefit growth -- benefits stillgrow, but at a slower rate, a rate in which government can now afford,a younger generation can afford to pay in, at a slower rate -- we solvea lot of the Social Security problem. And so I put that on the table for people to consider. To me, itmakes sense. To me, it's fair. Benefits go up; certain people'sbenefits will go up faster than others, depending upon their incomelevel. And so, then there's other options on the table that Congress needsto come and talk about. In good faith, they need to come -- set asidetheir political party and say, for the good of the country, why don'twe come together and solve a significant problem. I want to talk about one other idea that we're going to spend sometime talking about today. In order to make Social Security a betterdeal for younger Americans -- in other words, what I've just laid outis a way to permanently solve the issue. But I think we ought to makeit -- without raising taxes, by the way, without raising payroll taxes,which is important. (Applause.) I think we ought to let youngerworkers, if they decide -- if they say, this is something I'd like todo -- is to take some of their own money that they're paying into thesystem through the payroll tax and set that money aside in a voluntarypersonal savings account. Let me tell you why it will be a better deal -- and we're going tospend some time talking about this -- money grows over time. You holdmoney and you get a decent rate of return on that money, it tends tocompound, it grows, the growth accelerates. That's just how it works.It's called the compounding rate of interest. Right now, when wecollect your money, if you're a youngster out there working hard andpaying into the system, you'll be displeased to know you get about a1.8 percent return on your money, which is pitiful, rate of return.Heck, you can put your money in T-bills and do better than that. I think we ought to allow younger workers to take some of their ownpayroll taxes -- remember, it's your money, and not the government's --and set it aside, and be able to invest in a conservative mix of bondsand stocks, if that's what you choose to do. I recognize some people,that makes them nervous in America. You don't have to do it. It's avoluntary idea. In other works, you say, here's your option, if thisis what you think makes sense. A conservative mix of bonds and stocks,for example, can yield over a period of time 4.5 percent rate ofreturn. And that difference between the 4.5 percent somebody gets orthe 1.8 percent you're now getting over a 30-year period is a lot ofmoney. It's a lot of money. And so, when I say better deal, it's a better deal for somebody toearn better interest on their own money. That makes sense. I mean, wetried it before, by the way. As a matter of fact, we're trying itnow. This may interest you. This was such a good idea that members ofthe United States Senate and the United States Congress decided that inthe federal retirement system, called the Thrift Savings Plan, thatpeople, if they so choose, ought to be allowed to set aside some oftheir own money to get a better rate of return on their money. Sohere's my attitude and my message to the people in Washington, D.C. Ifyou let yourself do it, if you think it's such a good idea for you,who's been elected to the Congress, then you ought to let workers havethat same option. (Applause.) The personal savings account, the voluntary personal savingsaccount would be a supplement to your Social Security check. It wouldbe a part of a Social Security system, it's not \"the\" Social Securitysystem. The government is going to say you can't put all your payrolltax, you can put a portion of your payroll taxes, and so you'll end upwith something in the Social Security system, as well as your own nestegg that the government cannot take away. It's your own nest egg thatthe government can't spend on other government programs. It's yourmoney. (Applause.) If you're a 20-year-old making $8 an hour over your career -- 20years old today, $8 an hour over your career, and if the governmentlets you put a third of your payroll taxes in a voluntary personalsavings account, you'll end up with a nest egg of $100,000 when you're63. If you're a police officer and a nurse, who started working in2011 and you work your entire careers, when you retire both of you willhave a combined nest egg of $669,000 as part of your retirementpackage. That's how money grows. I think it makes sense to let people, if they so choose, have anasset they call their own. It's beneficial for society. One of thethings I've tried to do as the President is promote an ownershipsociety. We want more people owning their own assets. We want morepeople owning their own home. We want to encourage entrepreneurship,so people can own their own small business. I think it makes sense tohave people from all walks of life owning and managing their ownassets, if that's what they choose to do. I reject the idea, soundlyreject the idea that the investor class, the so-called investor classshould be the only owners in America. I think ownership ought to bespread to every corner of America, for people of all walks of life, nomatter what their demographic background may be, or no matter whattheir income level is. I like the idea of moms and dads being able topass on assets to whomever they choose. (Applause.) A couple of other things -- I'm getting a little windy, aren't I(Laughter.) Thank you. She said I'm on a roll. (Laughter andapplause.) Just a couple of other points I want to make; then we'll go to someof our guests here -- not \"some of our guests,\" all of our guests.First of all, there are rules. In other words, people say to me, well,you know, what happens if somebody makes a risky investment The ideaof having a voluntary personal savings account does not allow for --you can't take your money to the lottery, or the track. (Laughter.)There's a conservative mix of bonds and stocks. By the way, this happens all the time in our society where peopleare given some options in a rather conservative mix. It doesn't takemuch to get a better rate of return than government gets for you now.I was with John McCain at one of these events one time; he said hethought -- as he remembered, he got about a 7 percent rate of return onthe conservative mix of bonds and stocks that he has held for about20-some years. You put 7 percent onto a pretty good size of money,that grows rather quickly. And it's your money. And so there will be rules. People say to me, well, Wall Streetwill benefit. No, we're not going to let Wall Street gouge people onthis. I mean, that's just not going to happen. There will be a --there will be reasonable fees. And, of course, the government willhave an oversight role in all this business. It will be an opportunityfor people if they so choose. Let me tell you one other thing to -- that I think you'll findpatently unfair about this system. You got a husband and a wife, andthey've worked all their life, both contributing into the SocialSecurity, and the husband passes away. And the wife will then be in aposition to either have her own benefits, or her husband's benefits,but not both. In other words, somebody has been working -- the spousehas been working and one dies early, and both of them had been workingall their life -- think about this system -- when it comes time toretire, the surviving spouse -- man or woman -- gets to choose his orher benefits, or the deceased spouse's benefits, which is ever higher,but not both. That means somebody has worked all their life and putmoney into the system that at some point in time just goes away. And these are hard working people we're talking about in America --people who have worked hard and paid that payroll tax. And if you're ayoungster who just entered the work force, you know what it means togive some payroll tax. That's that first shock you get when you seethat payroll tax coming out of your check. Imagine a system whereyou've worked all your life and it's not there. And so one of thereasons -- another reason I like somebody to be able to have assetsthat they can pass on to whomever they choose, here's an instance --the example I just gave you says that a husband or a wife will have anasset base upon death to be able to pass on to the surviving spouse tohelp them out during this incredibly difficult period. And so Congress needs to consider this idea. And I repeat, if it'sgood enough for you in the Congress, it ought to be good enough forworking people here in America. (Applause.) Rick Paxton. Welcome, Rick, thank you. Where do you live MR. PAXTON: Yes, sir, I live right here in Hopkinsville , Kentuckyhere. THE PRESIDENT: Good place to live, isn't it MR. PAXTON: It's a wonderful place to live. (Applause.) THE PRESIDENT: Thanks for coming. Tell everybody what you do. MR. PAXTON: I'm a financial consultant with Hilliard-Lyons, havebeen for the last 15 years. THE PRESIDENT: Good. I ask -- on these panels I always asksomebody who -- to come who knows what he or she is talking about, anexpert. MR. PAXTON: Uh-oh. (Laughter.) THE PRESIDENT: Usually it's a PhD. I know you're not one. And I-- (laughter) -- and I like to tell people, he's a PhD. I'm a Cstudent -- was a C student -- and look who the advisor is.(Laughter.) So all you C students out there, work hard, but there'shope for you. (Laughter and applause.) All right, Rick. Rick studies markets and investments. Let herrip. MR. PAXTON: Yes, sir. Well, first, I have with me today my wife,Anne, and my two wonderful children, Chris and Elizabeth. THE PRESIDENT: Well, good. Welcome. MR. PAXTON: And on behalf of my children, I just want to thank youfor being brave enough to take this on. I know it's politically been athing that's been talked about. I can remember 30 years ago in acollege economics class, the professor talking about the coming problembecause of our generation, the baby boomers. THE PRESIDENT: Yes. MR. PAXTON: And I just want to commend you for taking this on. THE PRESIDENT: Well, thanks Rick. You're kind to say that, thankyou. (Applause.) That's what you're paying me to do. Go ahead. * * * * * THE PRESIDENT: That's interesting. I hope everybody understandswhat he's saying. If you keep your money and it grows, it tends to --it accelerates, it snowballs, I guess. It's not a very sophisticatedterminology, I recognize -- Q That's very good. THE PRESIDENT: Thank you. Well, I did pay attention to somecourses. (Laughter.) Anyway, but it grows. You told me an interesting story about some of the seminars youconduct. Q Yes, sir. One of the jobs that I have is to go into companiesand work on the retirement plans with them. And we address rooms ofpeople who are planning for their retirement and enrolling in theretirement plan. For 15 years I've been doing this, and the firstquestion I ask them, and have for 15 years, \"Is there anybody in thisroom who thinks that they'll be able to depend on their Social Securitywhen they get there Do you think it will be there for you inretirement\" And in 15 years, I've never had a hand go up. THE PRESIDENT: Interesting, isn't it Think about a governmentthat has this program where we're taking a lot of money out of yourpocket. And he goes in a room and says, anybody think they're going tosee a check -- these are younger workers he's talking to -- or thinkthe system will be there for them And they don't raise their hand. What are the -- government must build trust. And one way you buildtrust is you say that when you put money into something you're going toget something out of it. Now, if you're an older American, you're ingood shape. But the dynamics have shifted. And what the amazing thingis, a lot of youngsters understand what he's talking about; they'rebeginning to see the realities of a Social Security system that is notsolvent for them. It's solvent for their dads and granddads andgrandmoms; it's not solvent for them. You know, they tell me -- somebody told me about a survey one timewhere the youngsters said they're more likely to see a UFO than aSocial Security check. (Laughter.) It's got to be a littledisheartening if you're a person who believes you're more likely to seea UFO than get a Social Security check and you're paying into thesystem, hoping that the system is available for you. And that's why Ikeep trying to explain to people -- or do explain to people, this is agenerational issue. Grandmoms and granddads ought to be worried abouttheir grandchildren coming up and putting money in a system that's notgoing to be available for them. (Applause.) What else you got I've got a question for you. I've got aninteresting -- you know what's interesting about our society -- andthere is some concern, I readily understand that people are nervousabout maybe investing their money, particularly older Americans thataren't used to it. But think about what's taking place in societytoday -- 401(k)s. You look like kind of an older fellow -- were youaware of a 401(k) when you were 20 years old MR. PAXTON: I wish they were around then. THE PRESIDENT: Yes, 401(k)s are investment vehicles for workers towatch their own money grow. It's part of retirement. A lot of peoplehave them. I was in an automobile factory in Mississippi, talking toline workers. I said, how many of you all invest your -- watch yourown money grow and make investment decisions for your money through a401(k) plan in this plant I'm telling you, hands went up -- a lot ofhands, people from all walks of life. The culture is changing -- we'vegot investors now all across America, people from all walks of lifelearning to invest. IRAs -- I'm sure you're spending a lot of time onthat. MR. PAXTON: Sure. THE PRESIDENT: So when you hear people say, well, I'm not so sureif America is ready for this, two things come to my mind. One, a lotof Americans already are watching their own money grow. And, two, youcan learn pretty quick when you're watching your own money. You knowwhat I'm saying You ask a lot of questions when it's your money, andyou learn really fast. And so, Rick, thank you for coming, I appreciate it. MR. PAXTON: You're welcome, sir. Thank you for inviting me. THE PRESIDENT: We've got Clay Walton. Speaking about younger -- Idon't know about UFOs and Social Security checks; I do know you're afarmer. Isn't that right MR. WALTON: That's right. THE PRESIDENT: Well, say something, then. (Laughter.) MR. WALTON: That's correct. THE PRESIDENT: Okay. What do you farm MR. WALTON: I'm from here in Hopkinsville. THE PRESIDENT: Like what crops MR. WALTON: I grow alfalfa hay. THE PRESIDENT: Very good. Is the market all right I shouldn'thave asked that -- it's never all right if you're a farmer, is it MR. WALTON: You can buy some, if you want. (Laughter.) THE PRESIDENT: Take it back to Crawford. (Laughter.) So tell me, has this family farm been around for a while MR. WALTON: Yes, sir, it sure has. THE PRESIDENT: Good. MR. WALTON: My father and my grandfather and even mygreat-grandfather. THE PRESIDENT: Really Which brings up another subject. We'vegot to get rid of the death tax forever. (Applause.) We want to keepthis asset in this man's family. Talk about passing assets from onegeneration to the next, farmers are pretty good about that. It doesn'tmake sense to tax a person's assets twice -- when you're living andthen when you die. Anyway, sorry to interrupt, just a thought that popped into myhead. (Laughter.) Happens occasionally. (Laughter and applause.)What's your concerns on Social Security MR. WALTON: Well, my concern is, being a farmer, Social Securityis really the only thing I have. Nobody offered me a 401(k), oranything when I started farming. And I'm paying into it all theseyears and I'm really counting on it, and I would kind of like it to bethere when I retire. THE PRESIDENT: Interesting, isn't it -- here's a sole proprietor,kind of a man out there on his own and he's paying into the system andsounds like to me -- I don't want to put words in your mouth, but itsounds like you might be a little nervous about whether it's going tobe there. MR. WALTON: Oh, absolutely. THE PRESIDENT: Congress has got to understand you've got a29-year-old farmer working hard, putting money in the system -- He'ssitting right up here in front of all these cameras saying, I'm not sosure the system is going to be there for me. That's the problem. Andthat's the problem that I'm going to spend whatever time is necessarytalking about to get the folks up there to get something done on behalfof this good man. (Applause.) He works hard enough to have to [sic]worry about whether or not Congress can do the right thing with hismoney. What else you got MR. WALTON: I have a new wife. THE PRESIDENT: Well, that's a good move. (Laughter.) That's thesmartest thing you did. (Laughter.) Good, I'm looking forward tomeeting her. MR. WALTON: All right. THE PRESIDENT: Have you ever thought about the personal accounts,at all Has that thought ever -- MR. WALTON: Oh, I think that's a very good idea. I mean, youknow, anybody that's just giving their money away, they -- you know,having choices and options for a little bit of our money seemsreasonable to me. THE PRESIDENT: Yes, seems like it to me. I mean, what's wrongwith government saying, if you so choose I recognize that's maybe alittle different philosophy than some have in Washington. But it says,we trust you. After all, who should government trust Governmentought to trust the people. That's how this government is formed.That's the strength of our country, is trusting people. And, afterall, we're trusting you with your own money. You said you're workinghard, you're paying in the system. I just want you to recognize -- Irecognize whose money it is. It's not the government's, it's yours. You're doing fine. (Applause.) Is it raining enough for you MR. WALTON: Growing a little bit more now. THE PRESIDENT: That's good. All right, Erica. Good job. Whenwere you married, by the way MR. WALTON: A little over six months ago. THE PRESIDENT: Should have invited me. (Laughter.) Never toolate, get a couple of matchbooks or something. (Laughter.) Erica Campbell -- thank you, good job. Erica, welcome. MS. CAMPBELL: Hello. THE PRESIDENT: What do you do MS. CAMPBELL: I'm a full-time nursing student and part-timemedical assistant at OB/GYN Associates. THE PRESIDENT: Awesome. Need a little medical liability reform inWashington, D.C., by the way, to keep these OB/GYNs in practice.(Applause.) MS. CAMPBELL: Yes, we do. THE PRESIDENT: You've also got a -- your most important job,however, is -- MS. CAMPBELL: I'm a mother. THE PRESIDENT: There you go. MS. CAMPBELL: I have a four-year-old daughter named Kyler. THE PRESIDENT: Fantastic. Is she here MS. CAMPBELL: She's right over there. Hi, Kyler. THE PRESIDENT: Sound asleep. MS. CAMPBELL: Asleep Okay. THE PRESIDENT: Laura told me not to talk too much -- I put herasleep, didn't I (Laughter.) This is -- I love this story by theway. Here's a single mom, working hard, working a job -- two jobs --mom, first; a -- what did you say you were, a OB/GYN MS. CAMPBELL: A medical assistant. THE PRESIDENT: Medical assistant. MS. CAMPBELL: And a full-time nursing student. THE PRESIDENT: Now going -- a student, becoming a student. That'sgreat. I appreciate you doing that. It's -- you're doing your duty.Now, here you are talking about Social Security. Tell -- give me somethoughts. * * * * * THE PRESIDENT: Let me stop you right there real quick. Isn't itinteresting -- a mom sitting here talking about a 401(k) or an IRA.These are investment vehicles that encourage people to save their ownmoney. Now, tell me what it's like on a 401(k). I mean, do you get amonthly statement, quarterly statement MS. CAMPBELL: We get -- it seems like every day we piece of paperfrom it. (Laughter.) But it's like every two weeks -- THE PRESIDENT: Oh, that's good. MS. CAMPBELL: -- I think we get a statement from it. It's takenout of my paycheck before I ever see it, so I don't miss it, and it'sright there and I can keep up with it. THE PRESIDENT: And you get to look at it. MS. CAMPBELL: It's actually through Hilliard-Lyon. THE PRESIDENT: That's good. Doesn't it make sense to have asociety in which people are constantly reminded about growth of theirassets It seems like to me it would cause people to pay pretty closeattention to what the government's decision-making process is like. Imean, here's a young woman who opens up on a bimonthly basis herstatement, reminding her that she owns that. That's part of anownership society. Keep going. (Laughter.) * * * * * THE PRESIDENT: This is what we're talking about. We're talkingabout giving a worker, a fellow American, the opportunity -- if she sochooses -- to take some of her own money, watch it grow just like she'sdoing in a 401(k), building up a nest egg, an asset base which willgive her peace of mind. In other words, an asset that she can pass onto her young daughter. Now, this asset will grow over time as we talked about, theinterest compounds at a reasonable enough rate, it grows. And I just-- I cannot believe that people in Washington, D.C. are -- don'tunderstand the power of this idea for a person like Erica, and wouldn'tbe willing to give Erica the opportunity, if she chooses -- her choice-- to set aside some of her own money, just like she just said shewants to do. And -- is it hard to invest I mean, do people -- I hear peoplesay, well, it may be too difficult. MS. CAMPBELL: I did it. I didn't think it was too hard. I'm nota rocket scientist, but whenever you sign up for your job they just setit down and explain it to you right then and you sign up for it, andyou don't have to do anything else if you don't want to. THE PRESIDENT: See, there's plenty of help. And you've gotadvisors, people who are going to -- and these 401(k) plans, forexample -- and I'm -- there will be a whole group of people that willbe available to give people reasonable advice about what to do withtheir own money. And it's really important for our fellow citizens tounderstand it doesn't take much to get a better rate of return than thegovernment is getting for you now. And that differential makes a hugedifference for future savings for our fellow citizens. Erica, thank you. Looking forward to meeting Kyler. MS. CAMPBELL: Thank you. THE PRESIDENT: We better not wake her up yet, though, right MS. CAMPBELL: We're waking her up for the picture. (Laughter.) THE PRESIDENT: Yes, okay, good. (Applause.) Thanks for coming. Lindsay Freeman. Lindsay, right here from Hopkinsville MR. FREEMAN: Right here in Hopkinsville, 68 years. THE PRESIDENT: Really, and that's how old you are MR. FREEMAN: Yes, sir. (Laughter.) THE PRESIDENT: So, therefore, you were born here. MR. FREEMAN: Yes, sir. THE PRESIDENT: And you were a major general MR. FREEMAN: I retired from the Army Reserve as a major general,yes. THE PRESIDENT: Thanks for serving. Good job. (Applause.) Youget -- you're eligible for Social Security MR. FREEMAN: Yes, sir. THE PRESIDENT: Are you getting it MR. FREEMAN: That's a big part of my income today, is my SocialSecurity. THE PRESIDENT: A lot of people like Lindsay in America -- \"a bigpart of my income,\" how I live my life depends upon the Social Securitycheck. And there's thousands and thousands of people like Lindsay.They're saying, I need my check, Mr. President. Don't take it awayfrom me. Don't mess with it. And he doesn't have to worry about it.I hope -- I hope that message has sunk in. MR. FREEMAN: Well, I'm not worried about it for me, but I'mworried about it for my daughter who is out here, Elizabeth. And sheworks for the drug court. And we're worried about it for my son who isan equine veterinarian out in Utah. THE PRESIDENT: Really. That's good. That's what I'm hearing alot more of, by the way. Once we've convinced seniors there's nothingto worry about, then they're starting to say, well, Mr. President, I'mnot worried about me, but what are you -- what do you all intend to doin Washington about my children or my grandchildren This is -- folks, this is a generational issue we're talkingabout. This is an issue that really does relate to a youngergeneration of Americans who are just starting in the work force andcoming up. What else you got on your mind MR. FREEMAN: Well, I need to introduce my wife, Nancy, who is aformer schoolteacher, is here. And she's the one in the wheelchairover there with the broken leg. And then my daughter's friend, KennethStoll (phonetic) is a firefighter -- THE PRESIDENT: Fantastic. MR. FREEMAN: And then my sister-in-law, TC Freeman, works forSenator Bunning. So we have -- THE PRESIDENT: Yes, well -- fortunately, you don't have a largefamily; otherwise we'd still be -- (laughter and applause.) Let me say something about your wife. First of all, thanks forbeing a schoolteacher. One great way to serve our nation is to teachschool. And it's a wonderful profession. (Applause.) MR. FREEMAN: Well, I worked in a family business for almost 50years, and of course, I paid self-employment tax for all those years.And I just wish that I'd have had an opportunity to invest some of myown money 50 years ago. And I would have invested it in a real safemutual fund. And based on Rick's statistics, I'd have been amillionaire. THE PRESIDENT: That's right. Well, he's not kidding, though. Youput enough money aside and you hold it long enough, and you get adecent rate of return, money grows. That's what people have got tounderstand. We're missing that opportunity in America. One way tomake this system work better, a better deal for people who are puttinghard-earned money is just give them a chance to watch their money growin a conservative mix. And that's what you're talking about. I appreciate you reminding people of that. I'm also beginning tohear more people saying, I wish I'd have put a little something aside,or had the opportunity if I so choose to put money aside. And that'sall we're saying. We're saying, if you want to, you can put it aside.The government is not saying, you have to. We're saying, you ought tobe able to -- which seems reasonable. After all, they get to. What else you got, General MR. FREEMAN: Well, I still work part-time for BMAR Associates,which is located here in Hopkinsville, and Terry Hanby is thePresident, and he has about 1,400 employees. And he really pushes yourSocial Security program, I'll tell you. THE PRESIDENT: Well, I appreciate that. Tell him, thanks.(Applause.) You know, one of the interesting things that Lindsay said, thereare a lot of businesspeople who contribute 12.4 percent into the SocialSecurity -- a lot of sole proprietors. They pay the whole deal. Youknow workers pay 6.2 percent, but if you're self-employed, you'reliable to pay 12.4 percent, which doubles the pain if you're a youngself-employed person, when you think nothing is going to be there. And so we're really dealing with an issue that not only relates toa person being able to retire -- in other words, listen, SocialSecurity has been a safety net -- let's put it that way -- and there'sa big hole in the safety net for a younger group of Americans, andwe're trying to bind that hole up. But we're also giving people a chance to pass on assets from onegeneration to the next. That's what a free society is all about, isn'tit People work hard, they benefit from the freedom of America, andthen they're able to pass something on to the next generation, ifthat's what they choose to do. To me, that brings stability to oursociety. It's an incentive; it gives people peace of mind. It gives ayoung mom peace of mind. We've got an interesting person with us here. That would be you.(Laughter.) Cecil Ferrell. MRS. FERRELL: Right. THE PRESIDENT: Microphone -- I'm a little hesitant to tell heranything after that -- she reminds me of my mother a little bit.(Laughter.) MRS. FERRELL: I thought I was just supposed to hold it, I didn'tknow I was supposed to talk in it. (Laughter.) THE PRESIDENT: Well, we're trying to get some wisdom from you.I'm really hungry. (Laughter.) MRS. FERRELL: You are THE PRESIDENT: Can you help me out MRS. FERRELL: Well, I tell you, the only thing is to bring you ahamburger. (Laughter.) THE PRESIDENT: That's it. Cecil Ferrell was one of the foundersand owners of Ferrell Hamburgers. When did you all start the deal --start your business (Applause.) MRS. FERRELL: We started in Owensboro in 1929. We had two placesthere. My husband and his four brothers were all in together. And sowhen they built the one in Hopkinsville, David and I moved down hereand took over. So we've been here for 69 years. THE PRESIDENT: Whew, that's a lot of burgers. (Applause.) MRS. FERRELL: That's right. A lot of water under the bridge. Alot of water under the bridge. (Laughter.) THE PRESIDENT: That's right, a lot of water under the bridge. MRS. FERRELL: I have -- my husband died in 2001, and my daughterdied in 2002 -- THE PRESIDENT: You've had a tough go. MRS. FERRELL: My son is here. He -- THE PRESIDENT: Where is he MRS. FERRELL: He's over here, Phillip. THE PRESIDENT: Are you still telling him what to do (Laughter.) MRS. FERRELL: No, you don't tell him anything. (Laughter andapplause.) THE PRESIDENT: You're doing good. MRS. FERRELL: His wife is with him, Carolyn; and one of mygrandsons, David, lives in Bowling Green. He drove down. THE PRESIDENT: That's good. You have a family reunion. MRS. FERRELL: Just to see you. THE PRESIDENT: Just to see you! (Laughter.) I take it you'reeligible for Social Security MRS. FERRELL: Well, I'm getting that way. (Laughter.) I'm 86years old. I go to work every morning at 4:00 a.m. (Applause.) Howabout that THE PRESIDENT: You're doing good. MRS. FERRELL: I stay there usually around 12 hours a day. OnMonday, I go in at 3:00 a.m. and I stay for about 12 hours. So that'sa pretty full life. THE PRESIDENT: I'd say so. See if we can kind of tack back towardSocial Security here. (Laughter.) MRS. FERRELL: Okay. Well, I draw -- THE PRESIDENT: Are you getting a check MRS. FERRELL: I draw my husband's Social Security. THE PRESIDENT: Right, you draw the -- MRS. FERRELL: Mine, I wasn't getting anything, so -- (laughter.) THE PRESIDENT: Remember what I told you She had a choice, thehigher of the two. So the payroll tax you put in there just, poof,just went away. MRS. FERRELL: Yes, it just went the way of the balloon. THE PRESIDENT: Yes, it went in to pay for some of those governmentprograms in the pay-as-you-go system. MRS. FERRELL: Right. THE PRESIDENT: And you're getting a check. Any doubt you'll get acheck MRS. FERRELL: No, I don't have any doubt. And I think that -- THE PRESIDENT: That's good to hear. MRS. FERRELL: -- I think the system that you're working up is goingto work if people will just get with it and hang in there with you. THE PRESIDENT: I think it will. I appreciate you saying that.(Applause.) MRS. FERRELL: Is my face red THE PRESIDENT: No, not at all. You're doing good. (Laughter.)You know what the problem is in Washington MRS. FERRELL: What THE PRESIDENT: There is kind of a zero-sum attitude. See, if wedo this, so-and-so might look good; or such-and-such party mightbenefit; and, therefore, let's do nothing. It's not the rightattitude, you know that MRS. FERRELL: No. THE PRESIDENT: This country expects better out of the electedofficials. (Applause.) Don't you MRS. FERRELL: People have to learn how to work together. THE PRESIDENT: Well, that's right. And my attitude is this -- thePresident's job is to lay the problem out. I've done so here today; Iwill continue doing so around the country. I'm heading down toCrawford, but after that I'm going to head back out again, and I'mgoing to spend time talking about Social Security every week untilsomething gets done -- because that's my job. And my job also is toremind people of both political parties that there's a time to set allthat business aside and focus on what's good for the American people.(Applause.) And what's good for the American people is to hear the truth. Thetruth is we've got a problem. The truth is people who have retired aregoing to get their checks, they have nothing to worry about. And thetruth is they've got a younger generation of Americans coming up thatare going to be paying into the payroll -- paying through payroll taxinto the Social Security system, into a system that's going to bebankrupt in 2041. And now is the time. Now is the time for people to come together.And when they do there will be plenty of credit to go around -- plentyof credit for whoever is willing to come to that table and do what'sright for the American people. I want to thank you all for joining us. I want to thank you allfor coming out today on a rainy day to say hello. I appreciate yougiving me a chance to come and explain one of the really vital issuesfor the United States, an issue that will affect generations ofAmericans to come. We're going to get something done, folks. You knowwhy Because when it's all said and done, the American people aregoing to rise up and say, solve this problem, then you can go on to thenext. (Applause.) Thanks for coming. God bless. (Applause.) 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