The Battle for Social Security
From FDR's Vision To Bush's Gamble

Nancy J. Altman (Author)

9780471771722, Wiley

Hardback, published 22 November 2005

368 pages
23.2 x 16 x 3.2 cm, 0.562 kg

"[A] fine history … the best single explanation for Bush's [defeat] …Altman tells the story wonderfully…moves briskly…interesting story line."
—Robert G. Kaiser (The Washington Post, December 28, 2005)

“…a well-written political history, appealing to lay readers and policy analysts alike.” (Private Enterprise Research Center, March 2007)

This book illuminates the politics and policy of the current struggle over Social Security in light of the program's compelling history and ingenious structure. After a brief introduction describing the dramatic response of the Social Security Administration to the 9/11 terrorist attack, the book recounts Social Securityâ??s lively history. Although President Bush has tried to convince Americans that Social Security is designed for the last century and unworkable for an aging population, readers will see that the President's assault is just another battle in a longstanding ideological war. Prescott Bush, the current Presidentâ??s grandfather, remarked of FDR, "The only man I truly hated lies buried in Hyde Park." The book traces the continuous thread leading from Prescott Bush and his contemporaries to George W. Bush and others who want to undo Social Security. The book concludes with policy recommendations which eliminate Social Security's deficit in a manner consistent with the program's philosophy and structure.

Chapter 1: From the Poorhouse to Free Parking.

Chapter 2: Social Security’s Grandfather.

Subject Areas: Business & management [KJ]