The New Deal Social Security Proposal
FDR (Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s) arguments
for Social Security-underline the key ideas
expressed in each paragraph
The idea of government sponsored or run insurance
to help the elderly has been considered in the
United States since the early 20th century.
Although several bills have been introduced into
Congress, they have all been rejected. In addition,
these proposals have been adopted by numerous
European nations. Beginning with Germany in the
1880s, and followed by England, Spain, France,
Italy, Greece, Sweden, Norway, and the
Netherlands, European nations have provided a
guaranteed income for all of their elderly citizens
paid for through taxes. Each of the nations have
rejected the beliefs of Laissez-faire government and
instead embraced the belief that government has a
fundamental responsibility to care for all of its
citizens.
A social security program makes sense in a modern
society for the simple reason that it provides peace
of mind for the elderly. After years of work, people
deserve a rest, and as they age and lose physical and
mental ability to perform their jobs as well as when
they were younger, they deserve a chance to retire.
Once people retire, they no longer earn an income,
and their only support for the rest of their lives is
the money they saved during their working years.
Some people, unfortunately, do not have the selfdiscipline necessary to save for retirement and this
proposal would force them to contribute regularly
to their own retirement fund.
Social security is more than a bailout program for
those who would otherwise squander their money
during their youth or plan poorly for their later
years. As the average lifespan of Americans
increases, many people are living well past the age
of retirement. Given this increase in life expectancy,
those with modest incomes face a difficult decision:
Should they deprive themselves of a better standard
of living now to save for later years or should they
sacrifice their retirement life for a better standard
of living while they are working? If they die soon
after retirement, they will have sacrificed all of their
working years saving for retirement for nothing.
Or, if they live into their 80s, but did not save, they
will have no means of support for the later years of
life. Also, what if a retired person saved responsibly
for many years and their savings was wiped out by
Summarize the main idea in the
paragraph to the left
an economic accident or a severe illness that costs
lots of money? Where will elderly Americans find
the income they need unexpectedly?
Social Security will take the guesswork out of
retirement. If enough people contribute enough
money to provide for 10 to 15 years of retirement,
everyone will be able to draw from that pool of
money in the years between their retirement and
death because the early deaths and long lives will
balance out.
In the long run, this plan will be more constructive
and humane than the current system in which the
government bails out those people who have no
money. Such a system helps no one because it
requires taxpayers to support a never-ending line of
destitute people and eats away at the pride of those
that can only survive by relying on the charity of
others. As President Roosevelt says, “Continued
dependence upon relief induces a spiritual and
moral disintegration fundamentally destructive to
the national fiber…The federal government must
and shall quit this business of relief.”
The social security system, if passed, removes the
embarrassment of receiving government handouts.
Retired workers can feel entitled to their monthly
social security checks because they earned them
through their payroll contributions earlier in their
career. The system is hardly radical or untried. Ever
since German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck
introduced Social Security in the 1880s, the system
has worked effectively there and in other European
nations as well.
The committee that recommended this plan to the
United States government includes top
professionals from many fields including labor,
agriculture, business, religion, government, and
social work. To deal with the problems of the
elderly, these professionals agreed on a plan that
creates a vast pool of wealth without imposing any
major hardships on business or individuals.
The government has an obligation to that all of its
citizens enjoy a respectable standard of living. You
can either adopt this system or continue to pour
money into services for the growing number of
impoverished elderly Americans.
A Senator from your state gave the following speech about the Social Security Reform Act of
1935. This Senator was not a particularly bright person and has made a number of mistakes in his
speech. Knowing this, correct all the mistakes he made by crossing out the inaccurate
information and putting the correct information in its place.
“Ladies and gentlemen, the following act of Congress will provide money for all
Americans when they retire, regardless if they have ever worked in their life. This
program is a necessity because so many elderly Americans are economically well off in
the current depression. As Congress and President Hoover desired, the program will
provide all elderly retired persons a yearly check. Once a person turns fifty-five, they
may apply and receive their Social Security benefits. The benefits will come from a fund
that only employers pay into. This fund will simply serve as a transfer of money from
retirees to workers.
I support this program because we should lead the world; we would be the first nation
to have a form of social security for our elderly. In addition, we could help bring back
the ideas of Laissez-faire economics. Also, this program would help support many of the
supporters of the Republican Party like labor unions, African Americans, farmers, and
city dwellers.
In closing, I recently went to a fortune teller and she told me that the Social Security
program will be expanded to include survivors and dependents, the self-employed, but
not those disabled and unable to work. Also, the fortune teller informed me that the
Social Security fund will always have enough money to pay out to all retirees. These
facts make me happy and explain why I voted for the Social Security Reform Act of
1935.”