Seize 401k's to BAILOUT UNION PENSIONS? Yep, they're talking about it...

[ponycar17]

This subject just won't go away, which leads me to believe that it's getting more attention from the thieves.

New Lame Duck Threat to Bailout Union Pensions

by Connie Hair (more by this author)
Posted 10/08/2010 ET
Updated 10/08/2010 ET


Democrats in the Senate on Thursday held a recess hearing covering a taxpayer bailout of union pensions and a plan to seize private 401(k) plans to more "fairly" distribute taxpayer-funded pensions to everyone.


Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), Chairman of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee heard from hand-picked witnesses advocating the infamous "Guaranteed Retirement Account" (GRA) authored by Theresa Guilarducci.


(You can find the blistering interview with Guilarducci by radio talk show host Mark Levin in 2007 at the link).


In a nutshell, under the GRA system government would seize private 401(k) accounts, setting up an additional 5% mandatory payroll tax to dole out a "fair" pension to everyone using that confiscated money coupled with the mandated contributions. This would, of course, be a sister government ponzi scheme working in tandem with Social Security, the primary purpose being to give big government politicians additional taxpayer funds to raid to pay for their out-of-control spending.


From written hearing testimony submitted by Economic Policy Institute (EPI) Vice President Ross Eisenbrey:


“We need a comprehensive solution that addresses interrelated problems. For example, a system that places most of the burden for retirement saving on individuals will always have to wrestle with the problem of pre-retirement loans and withdrawals (simply plugging these leaks will not work, because many workers would stop contributing to the system). A system that relies on tax incentives to promote individual retirement savings will necessarily tend to favor high-income workers who can afford to save more and who benefit the most from these tax breaks. Conversely, a truly universal system would need to shield low-income workers from out-of-pocket costs or wage cuts. EPI has published and advocated what we feel would be an excellent national supplemental retirement plan, the Guaranteed Retirement Account which was authored by Prof. Teresa Ghilarducci, Director of the Schwartz Center for Economic Policy Analysis at the New School for Social Research. "


The EPI is housed on the third floor of the building occupied by the George Soros-funded Center for American Progress, a hard-core leftist group whose flavor of socialist policy has brought you the current blend of elitist socialism and crony capitalism bankrupting the American economy. Which speaks volumes about EPI and the Democrat leadership's choice of witness.


Brett McMahon, spokesman for the Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC), a trade association, warns this hearing exposed part of a process that may come as early as the November lame duck push to bailout union pensions by attaching the bailout to an across-the-board extension of the current tax rates.


"I am deeply concerned that they will try to attach something like the Casey bill or the Casey bill in and of itself to tax cut extensions bill that is inevitably going to have to be dealt with at some point during the lame duck session," McMahon told HUMAN EVENTS.


As reported in HUMAN EVENTS the Casey bill from Sen. Bob Casey (D-Penn.) is a new entitlement program that would set up a permanent bailout of the union multi-employer pension plans that are desperately underwater through a new "fifth fund" at the government Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC). Casey’s bill would create a line item on the federal budget through the PBGC to fund these union pension bailouts annually -- union pensions that are underwater as a result of mismanagement that pre-dates the 2008 financial upheaval.


Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) was the only other senator at the hearing with Harkin. His particular brand of gutter class warfare was on full display as the self-described socialist made the absurd claim that wealthy job creators oppose the Social Security system because it "works."


"So, the reason that there is so much opposition to Social Security for some of these billionaire guys is because Social Security has worked. It has done exactly what it was supposed to do. It has worked for the elderly, for the disabled, for widows and orphans," Sanders said in his opening remarks.


In typical leftist drive-by fashion, Sanders never explained why he believes successful people don't like the elderly, disabled, widows or orphans.


And, of course, the theme of the day was "fairness" as it's somehow "fair" to take what one person has earned in the free market and give it to another in a government-run wealth redistribution retirement scheme.


Shareen Miller, a personal care assistant and a member of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local Number 5 in Falls Church, Virginia, offered testimony about the need for wealth redistribution to fund her pension.


"I make $12 an hour and receive no healthcare benefits, retirement benefits, sick time or vacation," the SEIU union member said.


Which begs the question: why is she paying union dues? Not exactly a sterling recommendation for SEIU membership.


Miller went on to say that the physical demands of her job giving care to a cerebral palsy patient are becoming more difficult. But Miller has been aware of these conditions for at least two years.


In 2008, Miller spent a day with then Virginia Senate candidate Mark Warner in an SEIU "Walk a day in the shoes" for Democrat candidates. Common sense would dictate Miller's individual responsibility for moving out of this particular line of work, leaving the physically demanding jobs to younger folks entering the work force. Perhaps Miller could demand fair payment for shilling for Democrats.


But the physical demands and hazardous jobs claims are not new from those demanding taxpayers fund a "fair" pension for everyone. This scheme is at the heart of the collapse of European socialism.


From Michael Lewis in Vanity Fair magazine:


"The retirement age for Greek jobs classified as 'arduous' is as early as 55 for men and 50 for women. As this is also the moment when the state begins to shovel out generous pensions, more than 600 Greek professions somehow managed to get themselves classified as arduous: hairdressers, radio announcers, waiters, musicians, and on and on and on."


Overall McMahon said the pressing issue for the lame duck is the union pension bailout with new Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) rules currently set to take effect December 15. These new rules would force companies to account for the cost of penalties to extract themselves from these union pension plans against their bottom line. (Full report from HUMAN EVENTS here.)


"The pension bailouts are something they need desperately and they need quickly because as everyone involved with the forthcoming new FASB rule acknowledges, you cannot stop the accounting board from a new transparency requirement," McMahon said. "It's going to hurt."


One of the largest of these multiemployer funds, Central States Funds, is in such bad shape that UPS paid a $6.1 billion penalty to extricate itself from employee participation in the fund. It is that type of penalty that would now be on the books, and it could be more than the company's overall value.


McMahon notes non-union companies without the multiemployer union plans have been operating under these types of transparency rules all along. And the participating companies have had decades to address the issue of the pension underfunding but have not done so.


Now companies and unions alike are looking for a taxpayer bailout in the lame duck session that could garner enough support from both sides of the aisle blanketed in the tax cut extension.


The lame duck session would offer the last chance for unions and companies to be able to place liability for their underwater pensions on the taxpayers' backs before the new FASB rule goes into effect.
Connie Hair writes daily as HUMAN EVENTS' Congressional correspondent. She is a former speechwriter for Rep. Trent Franks (R-Ariz.) and a former media and coalitions advisor to the Senate Republican Conference. You can follow Connie on Twitter @ConnieHair.

You can also follow Connie Hair and Human Events on FACEBOOK.

From http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=39336

Maybe we need a "Come and Take It!" logo for our 401k's?

[Big ugly]

I heard this on Neil Bortz talk radio show yesterday. They are not gonna sieze your 401k but seize control of your 401k that way they can control the intrest and use the intrest to help bail out the Union Pensions. Got to love these Democrates. They are gonna make a last stand before the elections. Meanwhile our tax dolars are goin to Obamma and Biden to travel all over the country so they can campaign for the loseing democrate candidates

[zkovach]

I am so sick of democrats i just cant stand it anymore!!!! I just thank god we finally will have a repub. gov. in michigan again! May be... just maybe... we will stop being a welfare state!

[graehaven]

They're gonna do it.

There's nearly $8 Trillion in Americans' personal long term savings accounts. That's too tempting for these crooked losers.

They're going to take it - count on it - it will be done secretly, in steps so as not to arouse suspicion - and it will all be done in the name of economic security.

[jim brady]

You guys are wrong about ALL Unions. Some are corrupt - and some are incompetitant. ALL are nowdays BIG BUSINESS. I respect Glenn Beck and FOX News in general, but it isn't right to blame the Unions - all of them - for the rampant corruption in politics. Our entrenched political party leaders - (BOTH parties) - are the problem. Do you really think Big Buiseness is exempt from being in bed with the Democrats? They have the same hand in BOTH parties. Thr Republican Party is sore at Unions because the Democrats bought them first.

Hey, NOBODY is going to bail out my Union Pension. That one is HISTORY. It's just a bunch of talk to stir people up against Unions even more than they already are. I don't believe that anyone would have the gall to raid our 401Ks that way. Besides, Wallstreet has THAT piggbank sewn-up. Ever notice how when we all begin to feel secure in out stocks and 401Ks that "the bottom falls out"? That's just the Big Boys skimming the cream off the top. Both parties get their orders from Wallstreet.

[graehaven]

Originally Posted by jim brady

You guys are wrong about ALL Unions. Some are corrupt - and some are incompetitant. ALL are nowdays BIG BUSINESS. I respect Glenn Beck and FOX News in general, but it isn't right to blame the Unions - all of them - for the rampant corruption in politics. Our entrenched political party leaders - (BOTH parties) - are the problem. Do you really think Big Buiseness is exempt from being in bed with the Democrats? They have the same hand in BOTH parties. Thr Republican Party is sore at Unions because the Democrats bought them first.

Hey, NOBODY is going to bail out my Union Pension. That one is HISTORY. It's just a bunch of talk to stir people up against Unions even more than they already are. I don't believe that anyone would have the gall to raid our 401Ks that way. Besides, Wallstreet has THAT piggbank sewn-up. Ever notice how when we all begin to feel secure in out stocks and 401Ks that "the bottom falls out"? That's just the Big Boys skimming the cream off the top. Both parties get their orders from Wallstreet.

None of us mentioned anything about the unions. That was in the article. It's good union MEMBERS like yourself that are getting screwed over, and it's high time that the membership throw off the shackles of the union itself, seeing the corruption that is the cancer eating the organization. Union MEMBERSHIP needs to get stirred up because they are being used as pawns in what is sure to become a deadly game.

[zkovach]

If this thing would ever come to pass everyone would yank there money.. Just think how the economy would look then. However maybe thats what the dems want... if you yank out your money early you have to pay big tax penalties! Im not sure but i think they like tax dollars.

[hogger129]

Why don't people put their money into Swiss accounts or Grand Cayman accounts where the government can't touch it? Better yet, store it in a giant safe in your basement.

Then again, even if they can't get to it, they can just keep printing paper until your money is worthless.

Might as well buy gold, and store that away in a giant safe in the basement.

[dons2346]

That coffee can buried in the back yard is looking better and better.

[zkovach]

Originally Posted by dons2346

That coffee can buried in the back yard is looking better and better.

Thats funny...... wait maybe thats the best investment....

[jim brady]

Amen to that. I didn't take any of this as an attack on Union Members. Just that the brush that paints that sort of corruption taints the Unions as well. If any of those jacals in the Senate or Congress attempts to buy more votes that way with our taxpayer dollars they need to run out of Washington tarred and feathered.

Those coffee cans will be the next target for Government to goes after. If you have a nickle any place they will sniff it out. This country NEEDS a 3rd Party. You may be right about this becomming a 'deadly game'. There are some nut cases in the Unions, to be sure, but the vast majority of us are patriotic Americans who are sick of the same stuff as everyone else.

[Trouble 45-70]

Feds will probably require percentage of investments be in govt. bonds. No one else will buy them. Kind of like the IOUs in the SS lockbox.