Social Security, military funding, tax reform and keeping the budget balanced. These ought to be the priorities of the 106th Congress.
The first order of business during Wednesday's opening session was the election of Illinois Republican Dennis Hastert as Speaker of the House. We hope that will serve as a catalyst for bipartisan cooperation.Hastert, a self-effacing former high school teacher, is known as being much more of a facilitator than the previous speaker, Newt Gingrich. He has already said he'll work to end the partisan infighting that held up key bills in the last session.
President Clinton should take the lead on Social Security. But, perhaps remembering his disastrous foray into universal health care a few years ago, he has been reluctant to offer a plan. Congress therefore must be the driving force for Social Security reform and pass legislation that ensures the continuation of Social Security in a robust way, preferably through private investments.
According to projections, by 2010 the Social Security trust fund will begin paying out more than it is taking in. That's because the dynamics of the program have changed markedly since its formation in the 1930s. Then, there were more than 40 workers for every retiree. That ratio is now less than 4 to 1 and by 2030 it's projected to be less than 2 to 1.
Among solutions suggested so far, the one that makes the most sense would allow individual Social Security participants to invest in the stock market. Even under the worst-case scenario, people would end up with much more money at retirement than under the present system.
Militarily, Congress needs to support Clinton's plan to increase the defense budget by $110 billion over the next six years. While it's the largest hike in defense spending since the end of the cold War, it's needed. The military has been short-changed during much of the Clinton administration.
Congress needs to continue the tax reform process it started last year when it passed a bill that shifts the burden of proof from the taxpayer to the IRS when disputes arise. At some point the current system needs to be abolished, but only when a much better program is ready to be implemented. Until that time, Congress needs to make substantial and significant changes to the current code.
And it needs to be prudent in funding programs to ensure that for the second straight year it has a budget surplus -- last year marked the first time in 29 years that happened.
If it's dedicated to serving the people, the 106th Congress can make sure all of those things happen.