The problem is that the worker must have that first dollar in order to be eligible for the match. Therefore, the president's plan will offer little help to the poor. For wealthier workers, however, the president's plan creates a new middle-class entitlement. The government will be taking money from some workers through taxes and mailing checks back to others as matching funds for the USA accounts. These checks will have to keep on coming whether there is a surplus or not.
Entitlements are at the root of the government's budget problems.
Congress should be reforming existing entitlements, not creating new ones. A far better plan would be to allow workers to take the 12.4 percent of their income they are already paying for Social Security and divert that to individually owned, privately invested accounts. Low-income workers would be able to fully participate in the program, accumulating real wealth. The Cato Institute Project on Social Security Privatizaton E-mail the Webmaster 1000 Massachusetts Ave.