Ben Sasse Quotes
We should be reforming our entitlement programs to empower people.
Sasse, Ben. Press Release. United States Senate, 2017.
It was finally passed and signed into law on August 22, 1996
He later claimed that he misspoke. He was particularly damaged by this statement as he was personally very wealthy, was supported by most large corporations, and had been accused of only worrying about the rich and business.
What makes this a noteworthy political quotation is that when he made the statement, his party had lurched to the radical right and almost no one else in the Republican party would publicly say that the Federal Government had any legitimate role that involved social services, food distribution, welfare or health care. Also the Republican Presidential candidate the day before had been discovered writing off the poorest 43 percent of the country. Heller however, was up for reelection in a state what was hit much harder than most in the Great Recession and without Federal Assistance many state residents would be in terrible circumstances and Heller would not fare well in the election if he took the then required Republican ideology. Also, Heller came from a blue collar family and had a much different outlook than most Republicans of that particular time.
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.
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.
Benjamin Eric "Ben" Sasse is an American politician. Sasse, a member of the Republican Party, is the junior United States Senator from the state of Nebraska. Sasse earned a doctorate in history from Yale University. He taught at the University of Texas, and served as an assistant secretary in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. In 2010, he was named president of Midland University in Fremont, Nebraska.
