"The Third Rail Is Dead"

December 11, 2002

On December 4th the Cato Institute held a Capitol Hill briefing entitled "The Third Rail is Dead," featuring Sen.-elect John Sununu (R-NH), Rep. Pat Toomey (R-PA), and pollster David Winston of the Winston Group. As the title suggests, the event focused on the success enjoyed in the mid-term elections by personal account supporters like Sununu, Toomey, Elizabeth Dole (R-NC), Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and others.

Sen.-elect Sununu and Rep. Toomey discussed the obstacles they faced in presenting Social Security reform to the electorate in their respective states. For them, the keys to victory in this election included their willingness to broach the issue openly and honestly, a display of leadership in bringing the issue out in the open, and broad voter acceptance of the fact that the current Social Security system is not sustainable. "We were successful because on this issue, and hopefully on others, we were presenting a much more positive image of where we think [Social Security reform] and country ought to be heading," said Sununu.

Further, the three speakers argued, voters want greater control of their retirement money. The electorate as a whole was well-informed enough to see past the negative, misleading campaign tactics employed by reform opponents. "The end result was that [Republicans] were able to put forward a relatively complex idea that people actually listened to, and that we were successful with," said Winston.

Sununu and Toomey both cautioned against complacency on the part of personal account proponents, and insisted that action must be taken sooner rather than later to reform Social Security. "I think this is a winnable issue," Toomey said. "But there is still a lot of work to do."

David Winston went over his post-election survey that indicated broad support for Social Security reform including personal accounts among all working-age voters. Winston attributed lower levels of support for Social Security reform among elderly voters to widespread misconception regarding the nature of personal account reform proposals. The main challenge now, he said, was to show the elderly that their own benefits are not threatened by reform proposals, and that personal accounts would be the right choice for future generations.

The event can be listened to online by clicking here.

News coverage of the event can be found at: The Washington Times, The Oklahoman, Newsmax, Manchester Union Leader, The Detroit News

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