PERHAPS my standards are pathetically low, but I actually thought the Social Security debate was going reasonably well. Cheered on by a relentless blogosphere, the chronically spineless Democrats have put up a decent fight, and the Bush administration has been forced to address fact-based criticism of its privatization scheme.
Sadly, the discourse took a dive last week when USA Next, a conservative lobby group, launched a $10 million campaign to smear the AARP as a commie cabal of freedom-haters. Grateful for the diversion from the dull mathematics of rational debate, the news media have indulged a slander campaign that is not only useless but also insulting to our nation's seniors.
After selling out on the Bush administration's unfortunate prescription drug bill, the American Association of Retired People sharpened its dentures for the Social Security fight, producing a series of television advertisements in opposition to President Bush's plan. With 33 million members, the AARP cannot easily be ignored, so the right has used "independent" groups to paint the organization as a radically leftist lobby that opposes "traditional values." Most of the recent attacks have come from USA Next, a corporate-funded lobbying group with a history of spreading misinformation.
USA Next presents itself as the conservative alternative to the AARP, but it spends most of its money trying to terrify innocent old people. The group first appeared as the United Seniors Association in 1992, when founder Richard Viguerie used direct mailings to solicit donations from seniors with the warning that "All the Social Security Trust Fund Money is Gone!" Throughout the Clinton administration, the group spent millions on direct mail to seniors, warning that Medicare would soon be "rationed," leaving all but the wealthiest seniors sick and destitute. The organization has been campaigning for the privatization of Social Security since the late 1990s, when the group partnered with Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America.
Although USA Next claims to have 1.5 million members, its contributions appear to come exclusively from business interests; the group reported zero member donations to the IRS last year.Unlike the AARP, which seeks to inform its members about healthcare and financial issues, USA Next makes little effort to educate the public beyond smearing its opponents. The group's Web site lists only two "action items:" stopping the AARP, and, inexplicably, supporting Mel Gibson's "The Passion of the Christ" for best picture at the Oscars. The entire Web site radiates contempt for the intellectual capacity of group members, epitomized in a front page "Voice Your Opinion" poll: "Did you know that the AARP has received over $1 BILLION in taxpayer dollars over the past 20 years?"
Its attacks on the AARP have been similarly condescending: Instead of engaging in the economic argument against privatizing Social Security, USA Next has produced advertisements that link the AARP with gay marriage and accuse the organization of hating our troops.
USA Next has found no shortage of cable news hacks willing to devote air time to the alleged liberalism of the AARP. The hosts at Fox News have been fawning over USA Next's chairman, Art Linkletter, an affable old man who used to host a precious show called "Kids Say the Darndest Things" (as we are reminded without fail at each of his guest appearances). Sean Hannity described Linkletter as a "legend" and "a great American," while Alan Colmes brought the balance with rebuttals such as, "I was a big fan of 'House Party,'" and, "I want to know how you look so great."
Admirable as it may be that Linkletter is active in his golden years, his charm can't make up for his organization's insidious mission. USA Next wants not only to discredit the AARP, but more importantly to derail a productive discourse, forcing the organization to respond to outlandish accusations instead of concentrating on the implications of overhauling the current Social Security system.Its membership base is merely a prop for these goals.
USA Next's pabulum propaganda should offend our nation's seniors, many of whom are not yet senile, and are quite capable of seeing through unfounded defamation. Ultimately, the debate should be about the economics of Social Security and consequences of proposed changes, not the ideology of groups who oppose the administration's plan. If passed, the president's Social Security proposal will have drastic consequences for generations, and the media owe us a discussion that reflects the seriousness of what is at stake.
Cari Lynn Hennessy is a Cavalier Daily viewpoint writer.
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