NEWS and ISSUES

Keep on this one ... it's 401(k)s. Will it affect yours?

Obama Outlines Retirement Initiative

By EDMUND L. ANDREWS

Published: September 5, 2009

WASHINGTON — Back in 2009, President Obama, noting that millions of Americans do not have enough savings to cover their retirement, announced a package of initiatives on Saturday to spur increased savings.  Read article.

Would Obama, Dems Kill 401(k) Plans?

House Democrats contemplate abolishing 401(k) tax breaks

401(k) Foe Teresa Ghilarducci, the Most Dangerous Woman in America

Dr. Teresa Ghilarducci on Abolishing 401k Plans [audio] with Mark Levin:

   401(k) Professor and Foe Teresa Ghilarducci, titled by some the "Most Dangerous Woman in America" wants to do away with private retirement accounts and spread the wealth.

 Dr. Teresa Ghilarducci discusses casually with Mark Levin her outlined plan to Abolish American workers 401k plans. Listen as she, without guard, lets her plan be known ...  (listen to audio)

Teresa Ghilarducci is the director of the Schwartz Center for Economic Policy Analysis at the New School for Social Research and the author of the book "When I'm Sixty-Four: The Plot Against Pensions and the Plan to Save Them". She also wants to see 401(k) and Individual Retirement Accounts replaced by "government retirement accounts." (Yes, I am having a bit of fun with the "most dangerous" tag.) In an interview with my guy, Kirby Wilbur of KVI 570 AM in Seattle, Ghilarducci says one of her goals is—you guessed it—to "spread the wealth." Go about 12 minutes into the interview to hear it for yourself, gang.

401(k) Would Obama, Dems Kill Your Plans?

Would Obama, Dems Kill 401(k) Plans?

October 23, 2008 10:47 AM ET | James Pethokoukis | Print

I hate to use the "S" word, but the American government would never do something as, well, socialist as seize private pension funds, right? This is exactly what cash-strapped Argentina just did in the name of protecting workers' retirement accounts (Efharisto, Fausta's Blog). Now, even Uncle Sam isn't that stupid, but some Democrats might try something almost as loopy: kill 401(k) plans.

House Democrats recently invited Teresa Ghilarducci, a professor at the New School of Social Research, to testify before a subcommittee on her idea to eliminate the preferential tax treatment of the popular retirement plans. In place of 401(k) plans, she would have workers transfer their dough into government-created "guaranteed retirement accounts" for every worker. The government would deposit $600 (inflation indexed) every year into the GRAs. Each worker would also have to save 5 percent of pay into the accounts, to which the government would pay a measly 3 percent return. Rep. Jim McDermott, a Democrat from Washington and chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee's Subcommittee on Income Security and Family Support, said that since "the savings rate isn't going up for the investment of $80 billion [in 401(k) tax breaks], we have to start to think about whether or not we want to continue to invest that $80 billion for a policy that's not generating what we now say it should."

A few respectful observations: Check out the 5 observations here ...

My bottom line: If you believe in the long-run dynamism of the American economy, then you have to believe in the stock market. Listen to superinvestor Buffett, not the prof from the New School.

Read entire article and the 5 observations here ...