Rep. Cantor’s Announces He is Willing to Break Retirement Security Promises
Cantor Calls on Constituents Under 55 to “Adjust” Their Lives in Preparation for Cuts to Medicare and Social Security
RICHMOND– House Majority Leader Eric Cantor announced to the Wall Street Journal yesterday that he intends to cut the safety net as a means to balance the budget without raising taxes on the wealthy. One day after passage of the debt ceiling deficit bill which outlines $1.5 trillion in yet to be named cuts by the end of the year, the Representative from Glen Allen made it clear that "promises have been made that frankly are not going to be kept for many.”
Cantor, who supported the Ryan plan to turn Medicare into a fee-for-service voucher program, noted that, "When we came out with our budget, we said, ‘Look, let's at least put people on notice, but preserve those who are 55 and older’…The rest of us have got ample time to try and plan our lives so that we can adjust to reality here when you look at the numbers. Again the math doesn't lie."
Candace Graham, Virginia Organizing leader and Chesterfield resident, gave the following statement in response to her Representative’s remarks:
“As a constituent of Rep. Cantor’s I take exception to my congressman saying that the majority of his constituents want cuts to Social Security and Medicare. Poll after poll suggests that people of all ages would like to see the wealthy pay their fair share instead of cutting Medicare and Social Security. Rep. Cantor’s remarks are just one more reminder that he and many of his colleagues in Washington are out of touch with their constituents.”
“Rep. Cantor seems to have the absurd idea that those of us over the age of 55 have no concern about the retirement security of our children and grandchildren so long as our benefits are not attacked this time around. I am not content to tell my children to ‘adjust’ their lives to deal with the cuts to the safety net made by legislators who only represent the interests of the wealthy and corporations. Rep. Cantor said that ‘the math doesn’t lie,’ yet he ignores the math that suggests that ending the Bush tax cuts, closing tax loopholes and returning the tax rate to what it was under the Clinton administration would eliminate the need to raid our safety net,” said Graham.
Candace Graham joined a group of residents and physicians at Rep. Cantor’s Glen Allen office on July 22 to protest his support of cuts to the safety net.
Virginia Organizing will continue to organize against unnecessary cuts to the safety net as part of the debt ceiling deal and concludes their Social Security Outreach summer program next week. The program has given daily presentations on strengthening, not cutting, Social Security to hundreds of seniors in Rep. Cantor’s district over the last six weeks.
Virginia Organizing is a statewide grassroots organization that brings people together to create a more just Virginia.
