Larson, Former Congresswoman Kennelly Celebrate 75th Anniversary of Social Security In East Hartford
For Immediate Release: August 4, 2010
Contact: Paul Mounds 860-278-8888
LARSON, FORMER CONGRESSWOMAN KENNELLY CELEBRATE 75th ANNIVERSARY OF SOCIAL SECURITY IN EAST HARTFORD
East Hartford, CT- Today, U.S. Congressman John B. Larson (CT-01) celebrated the 75th anniversary of Social Security at the South End Senior Center in East Hartford. Congressman Larson was joined by former Connecticut First District Congresswoman Barbara Kennelly, President of the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare, and Judith Stein, founder and Executive Director of the Center for Medicare Advocacy.
Congressman Larson, Kennelly and Stein spoke of the importance of preserving Social Security and Medicare and took questions from seniors in the audience before cutting a celebratory cake.
"Today, we celebrate the genius of President Roosevelt, who recognized the need for a safety net for our nation's most vulnerable citizens as the country climbed out from the grips of the Great Depression," said Congressman Larson."As we find ourselves, 75 years later, recovering from the worst recession since that time, we can be thankful to have a solvent, successful Social Security program to support America's Greatest Generation."
Larson reiterated the need to defend the program against plans for privatization. In 2005, Republicans tried to dismantle and privatize Social Security. Recently, Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI), the ranking Republican on the Budget Committee, reintroduced the GOP plan calling to eliminate Medicare and privatize Social Security for America's seniors.
"Social Security is a strong cornerstone of our national economy. It is solvent, it is fiscally responsible, and it is necessary for our country. Republicans have been trying to destroy Social Security since its inception. Just imagine what would have happened had Republicans succeeded in turning over Social Security to Wall Street back in 2005,"stated Congressman Larson."We cannot undermine the financial security of 130,000 Social Security recipients across the First District by dismantling this program."
Congressman Larson added, "We must not follow the Republican agenda of paying for two wars and our recent recession on the backs of our nation's hard-working seniors. Our seniors have paid into this program for their entire working life, and I will fight to ensure that Congress will not take their money away."
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