View From a Height

Social Security Roadshow

As mentioned below, President Bush brought his Social Security Roadshow to town on Monday, and I got to see the event up-close and personal. All the pieces were there, but I came away thinking that the presentation could have been much more persuasive than it was.

The pieces were the President, Sen. McCain, and the panelists. The President was at ease, relaxed, a terrific presenter and moderator, and clearly in command of the facts. Sen. McCain added some centrist wattage, a challenge to the AARP in one of its home states, and another articulate voice. And the panelists really were just normal folks picked to represent different life stages and incomes.

One of the lighter moments came when the President introduced McCain, "He's up here to claim some of his water." This drew mostly good-natured boos; "Never mind. Just a little inside joke that didn't work." It turned into a running gag when McCain said he was here to visit some of his water, and cracked up even the President by asking us to remember that "Arizona is so dry the trees chase the dogs."

The President is trying to offer younger workers something - a tangible account of their own with higher returns - that also appeals to middle-aged workers - it's transferrable. At the same time, he needs to reassure retirees and soon-to-retirees that their stated benefits will be paid. He can make this case.

The problem is, the program couldn't decide if it wanted to be a political rally or a policy presentation, so it came off as an infomercial. When the President said he wanted to have a "discussion," it sounded like the discussion your dad had with you about that D in Algebra. I didn't do much talking during those discussions. The panelists were props. Willing props, to be sure, who wouldn't have been up there if they didn't support private accounts, but still props.

A number of people came away having learned something. A friend of mine from business school said that he hadn't realized that the government spent the excess payroll tax it collected. But people want details; they're parched for details; and our whole system is predicated on the notion that they can handle details. If avoiding the details makes a plan harder to attack, it also makes it harder to support.

If the President is still in the Convince People There's a Problem stage, this may have helped. Even there, the case could be stronger. Europe currently can neither grow economically nor defend itself because of its welfare state commitments. Social Security has the potential to do that to us a couple of decades from now. The President needs to point to Europe, and ask the American people if that's the path we want to take. He'll win that bet.