Expand Social Security Now! How to Ensure Americans Get the Retirement They Deserve

Why Social Security is not only sustainable but should be substantially expanded

Social Security is bankrupting us. It’s outdated. It’s a Ponzi scheme. It’s stealing from young people. These are some of the biggest myths and lies about one of the most successful programs in our nation’s history. Three-quarters of Americans depend heavily on Social Security in their elderly years and nearly half would be living in poverty without it. But as important and popular as it is, Social Security has become a political football. A well-financed campaign—supported by conservatives, special interest groups, and even leading Democrats—has lobbied for cuts and significant “entitlement reform,” falsely proclaiming that Social Security is going broke. Policy expert Steven Hill argues that Social Security should not only be defended, it should be substantially expanded. Here he proposes how we can double the monthly benefit and how to pay for it by closing many of the tax loopholes and deductions that disproportionately favor the wealthy few.

Steven Hill is a Senior Fellow with the New America Foundation and a Holtzbrinck Fellow at the American Academy in Berlin. He is the author of six books, including Raw Deal: How the “Uber Economy” and Runaway Capitalism Are Screwing American Workers, which was selected by The Globalist as one of the Top Ten Books of 2015. His op-ed’s, articles and media interviews have appeared in the New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, The Atlantic, Politico, CNN, C-SPAN, BBC, Financial Times, Guardian, Bloomberg News, Fox News, National Public Radio, The Nation, Salon, Slate, Observer, Fast Company, Business Insider, HuffingtonPost, Le Monde, Die Zeit, Al Jazeera and many others. His other books include Europe’s Promise: Why the European Way Is the Best Hope in an Insecure Age and 10 Steps to Repair American Democracy. He is a co-founder of FairVote/Center for Voting and Democracy. His website is www.Steven-Hill.com and you can find him on Twitter @StevenHill1776.

INTRODUCTION
High Stakes for the American People

CHAPTER ONE
What’s at Stake

CHAPTER TWO
The Collapse of the Three-Legged Stool

CHAPTER THREE
The Bipartisan Attack on Retirement Security

CHAPTER FOUR
The Nine Biggest Myths and Lies about Social Security

CHAPTER FIVE
The Solution: Expanding Social Security

CONCLUSION
Guaranteeing the American Dream Through Social Security Plus

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

NOTES

BIBLIOGRAPHY

INDEX