Via Think Progress.
The Congressional Quarterly is reporting that Treasury Secretary John Snow has said that the administration would "accept a Social Security overhaul that does not divert the program's payroll taxes in personal retirement accounts."
This certainly shows that they're getting desperate, and that they're well aware that they have little - and dwindling - support for their original plan.
But, as Josh Marshall points out, that's really all it shows. They're trying to appear to make concessions, but their ultimate goal is still to "overhaul" the Social Security system, which is code for "put it in a state that guarantees it will go away in a few decades."
It's good that they're feeling the pressure, but this is not a sign to take the pressure off.
Here's a Graphic of the latest poll results from the New York Times.
Some highlights:
Q: Does the Bush administration have the same priorities as most Americans on domestic issues?
Same Priorities: 31%
Different Priorities: 63%
No Opinion: 6%
Foreign policy issues?
Same Priorities: 37%
Different Priorities: 58%
No Opinion: 8%
Q: Do you have confidence in President Bush's ability to make the right decisions about Social Security, or are you uneasy about his approach?
Confident: 31%
Uneasy: 63%
No Opinion: 6%
Q: Should it be the government's responsibility to provide a decent standard of living for the elderly?
Should: 79%
Should Not: 17%
No Opinion: 4%
See? They think we're a bunch of free-marketers, but deep down, we're socialists. Most of us think a country as wealthy as ours should take reasonable care of it's citizens. Go figure.
