Bill Clinton Quotes
Medicare is more than just a program. It reflects our values. It’s one way we honor parents and grandparents and protect our families across the generations.
William Clinton, 42nd President of the United States (Democrat, AR), Radio Address, December 13, 1997
Sourced by: Eigen's Political and Historical Quotations
Both of these programs have been amongst the most popular programs in American History. Yet for Republican conservatives at the beginning of the 21st century, these were programs that they wanted to either terminate of alter in such severe manners that they would not be anything like the original programs. When these programs were passed by Congress, most Republicans were opposed to the legislation but enough were supportive to have bipartisan support. However, by 2000, most liberal Republicans had been driven out of the party, and it was the Democrats who kept the programs alive and in force despite the Republican assaults. The Democrats had public opinion on their side on these battles and even most registered Republicans opposed President George W. Bush’s major attempt to privatize Social Security.
This captures the essence of the Social Security System and similar old age support programs. In earlier and less developed societies, the cultural tradition was that the children had a responsibility to car for the elderly members of their families; in sophisticated societies, there is recognition that some younger people will not or cannot fill this responsibility and the system is institutionalized as Social Security of some variant thereof.
A professional mature female actress spoke the words. The Majority of the Republicans voted against the Medicare law that had passed under Lyndon Johnson. They lost millions of votes over that for years. Then at the end of the 20th century, many Republicans tried to reduce or privatize Medicare which by then was second only to Social Security among all government programs. The Democrats then used many variants of this Schwartz ad to great effect.
Social Security was part of FDR’s New Deal legislation. It was passed in the middle of the Great Depression in 1936. By the end of the 20th century many people had forgotten or never learned that Social Security was a government social program. It provided relieve for two of the biggest social problems—old age retirement and disability. Most people have no idea that they had disability insurance covered by Social Security throughout their working lives unless they happened to be disabled. The price of a comparable private disability plan would be substantial, yet it is a benefit that most people have and few know it.
18 years later, his son—George W. Bush—made the “nutty idea” one of the main planks in his Presidential legislative program. After the younger Bush traveled the country selling his reform ideas, the public came down on the side of his father and rejected the President’s “nutty idea.”
Forseth forgets that in Canada and the United States, as well as most other countries with equivalent systems, the individual worker pays into the Social Security Trust Fund and have paid for their insurance during their working career. Social Security has been solvent so no general welfare money has come into the system. Other conservatives complain that the yield that Social Security pays is not as large as it could be with a private investment and insurance option, so most conservatives do not even think of Social Security as a type of welfare.
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who was the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Clinton was previously Governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and 1983 to 1992, and the Arkansas Attorney General from 1977 to 1979. Clinton was born William Jefferson Blythe III – he changed to his stepfather's name at age 15.
