WASHINGTON (AP) -- Opening a summit on Social Security reform, President Clinton prescribed no blueprint but told lawmakers and policy advocates Tuesday: "Our ears and our minds must remain open to any good idea and to any person of good will."
After a year of promises during congressional debates, at town-hall meetings and on the campaign trail, the president's address to the year-end White House Conference on Social Security centered on a plea for bipartisan cooperation on action next year.Both Democrats and Republicans have pledged to try to find common ground on how to gird Social Security for the retirement of the nation's huge baby boom generation.
"We should begin this process on common ground -- agreeing above all on the importance of acting and acting now, while we can, during prosperous and productive times," the president said.
But the closest he came to revealing a specific idea on change was the sweeping and generic assertion that "Social Security is and must remain a rock-solid guarantee." On the politically charged question of whether some trust funds should be invested in the stock market, Clinton said only: "I believe we must construct a system where Social Security can be counted on regardless of the ups and downs of the economy or the market."
With Republican leaders saying they won't move forward until Clinton advances specifics, no decisions about the retirement program's future are likely to come out of the two days of talks.
At a downtown Washington hotel, Clinton addressed the conference of about 250 people invited by the administration from a broad array of groups representing different views on Social Security.
Vice President Al Gore had been scheduled to speak but is instead with family in Nashville, Tenn., following the weekend death of his father, former Sen. Albert Gore. Clinton and first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton were expected to join the Gores for a memorial service later.
Congressional leaders also were invited to give opening statements at the Social Security event. House Speaker-to-be Bob Livingston, R-La., and Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott, R-Miss., did not plan to attend personally, but each sent a delegation. Top Democratic leaders, Sen. Tom Daschle of South Dakota and Rep. Richard Gephardt of Missouri, were expected to attend.
The Social Security Administration arranged sites in all 50 states for people to gather to watch the event -- to include discussions by three panels of experts -- live via satellite.
After the public meeting, top White House advisers were to participate in closed-door talks with lawmakers and public policy advocates this afternoon and with lawmakers alone on Wednesday.