McCain gets Social Security, criticizes system
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) - July 17, 2008 "I'm receiving the benefits, the system is broken and,
unfortunately, my children and grandchildren, according to the
trustees of the Social Security system, will not have the same
benefits the present retirees have," McCain told reporters
Thursday on his campaign bus.
McCain's 2007 tax return shows Social Security benefits of
$23,157 for the year, an average of $1,929.75 a month. He said he
started receiving the payments "whenever I was eligible."
Asked last week by a young woman at a town-hall meeting in
Portsmouth, Ohio, if she is likely to receive Social Security
benefits one day, McCain said it is unlikely without fixing the
system.
"Americans have got to understand that we are paying
present-day retirees with the taxes paid by young workers in
America today," he said. "And that's a disgrace. It's an absolute
disgrace, and it's got to be fixed."
Social Security benefits are projected to exceed the system's
tax revenues in about nine years. The program's trustees have said
the Social Security trust fund will be depleted by 2041 unless the
system is changed.
McCain, who will turn 72 next month, was eligible to receive
full-retirement benefits when he turned 65. In 2008, the maximum
benefit for a person retiring at full retirement age was $2,185.
McCain reported a total income of $405,409 in 2007. As a
senator, he is paid $169,300 a year. Last year, he donated $105,467
to charity, his return shows.
McCain's wife, Cindy, reported a total income of more than $6
million in 2006, according to the campaign. She files her tax
return separately from her husband and has received an extension
for 2007. Heiress to a large Arizona beer distributorship, she is
reportedly worth more than $100 million.
People are not required to take Social Security payments,
according to B.J. Jarrett, a spokesman with the Social Security
Administration.
"An individual does have the right to refuse his/her Social
Security retirement benefit. However, Social Security is an
entitlement program and an individual would essentially be
forfeiting a benefit based upon contributions during his/her
working lifetime," Jarrett said.
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Associated Press writer Devlin Barrett contributed to this
report.