Sens. Obama, Durbin play key roles in opposing Bush plan
Wednesday, April 27, 2005
Printable FormatCOPLEY NEWS SERVICE
Dori Meinert
As the first congressional hearing on President Bush's Social Security overhaul plan got under way Tuesday, Sen. Barack Obama was at the National Press Club accusing Republicans of creating an ideologically driven, "manufactured panic" to promote the president's plan.
In a park near the U.S. Capitol, Assistant Democratic Leader Dick Durbin was one of numerous Democratic lawmakers blasting the plan at a rally that drew thousands from across the country.
Illinois' two Democratic senators played key roles in Tuesday's carefully choreographed opposition to the White House plan.
Obama was introduced by James Roosevelt Jr., the grandson of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, who with his sister, Chicagoan Anne Eleanor Roosevelt, has been vocally opposed to the GOP-led efforts to overhaul the government safety net established under their grandfather's presidency.
"I think we will save Social Security from privatization this year," Obama predicted before the sold-out National Press Club audience in a speech televised by C-SPAN. "And in doing so, we will affirm our belief that we are all connected as one people - ready to share life's risks and rewards for the benefit of each and the good of all."
From Social Security to rising health care costs, Obama said: "These are important questions that require us to work together, not in a manufactured panic about a genuine, solvable problem, but with the spirit of pragmatism and innovation that will offer every American the secure retirement they have earned."
Obama was invited to speak at the press club by the Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt Institute, who proposed the appearance, his spokesman said. James Roosevelt also was a "headliner" at the outdoor rally coordinated by the Democratic group, Americans United to Protect Social Security.
Meanwhile, President Bush continued his travels to build support for his proposal, which would allow younger workers to choose to invest some of their payroll taxes on their own.
Before a boisterous crowd at the rally, Durbin ridiculed President Bush's 60-day national tour to promote his proposal.
"If he's going to push for privatization, let's help him pack," Durbin said.
"Do you want the money men on Wall Street to manage your retirement security?" shouted Durbin to energize the crowd. "Do you want to trade your guaranteed Social Security benefits for a risky privatization scheme? Do you want your children and grandchildren to inherit another $5 trillion of debt to pay for private accounts?"