I continue to be amazed when I receive comments about Social Security, especially those that state Congress or the President stole the Social Security money.
No matter how many times this is explained, there are many people who simply refuse to believe the truth.
Nobody stole or misappropriated Social Security money.
Social Security payroll taxes not needed to pay benefits were invested in special government bonds that pay interest to the Social Security trusts. It is that interest that today allows the Trusts to pay full benefits. In a few years, the Trusts will have to redeem bonds to pay full benefits.
When those bonds are redeemed, the federal government will come up with the cash to put into the Trusts to pay benefits.
This is effectively the same thing that happens when Americans buy US Savings Bonds or other US government securities or even corporate bonds.
QUINNSCOMMENTARY 
It is not the same when the government borrows from itself. If the person who we loaned the Social Security surplus to was not $18+T in debt, and if they did not have $200+T in long term unfunded liabilities, I would be much more comfortable with your analogy.
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True enough, but aside from that where else would the payroll excess funds have been placed, the stock market? Imagine that uproar. Minimizing the debt would have been nice, of course. I find it beyond belief that people believe Bernie Sanders when he says SS has nothing to do with the federal debt or deficit. I wonder where he thinks the interest payments and more importantly the money to redeem bonds in a few years will come from.
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I strongly disagree but we have discussed this before so I have nothing else to add.
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I welcome disagreement and agreement with any of my or anyone else’s opinion, but this is not an opinion, it’s simply the facts. Please elaborate on what you disagree with about this post. It’s important for people to understand I think.
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