Why reform is tough

On the unseasonably cold morning of April 20, 1983, a coatless Ronald Reagan sat down on the South Lawn and signed a bill intended to rescue Social Security from imminent doom.

Neither Republicans nor Demo-crats were thrilled by everything in the legislation. But by agreeing to raise both payroll taxes and the retirement age they refreshed the government retirement program with a river of new cash. The compromise, President Reagan said, "is a clear and dramatic demonstration that our system can still work when men and women of good will join together to make it work."

Fast forward 22 years. Once again Social Security and its finances are Washington's Topic A. A 1983-style signing ceremony seems a distant dream, however. What did that era have that 2005 hasn't got?

Politics was different then, for one thing. Powerful figures on both sides of the aisle wanted a deal.

But the biggest change may be the acuteness of the problem. In 1983, Social Security was set to hit a fiscal wall within months. Today, the estimated time of arrival of the program's cash crunch is measured in decades - meaning the urgency needed to overcome political obstacles may be difficult to summon.

"Today they don't have that deadline. They're not playing in sudden death overtime,' says Edward Berkowitz, a professor of history and public policy at George Washington University.

Formal 2005 debate in Congress over Social Security reform began Wednesday, with a hearing on the subject before the House Ways and Means Committee. The topic was the general financial health of the system, rather than President Bush's specific proposal to establish private retirement accounts.

With Social Security's finances payments projected to exceed its tax receipts in 2018 or so, the program does not face an immediate crisis, David M. Walker, head of the Government Accountability Office, told the House panel.

But it does face a long-term financing problem, and "it would be prudent to address it sooner rather than later," Mr. Walker said.

The sharpness of some lawmakers' words indicated how difficult it may be for Congress to follow Walker's advice. In his opening statement, the ranking Democrat on the panel, Rep. Charles Rangel of New York, said flatly that "private accounts will not be on the table if you are looking for bipartisanship."

Meanwhile, the committee's Republican chairman, Rep. Bill Thomas of California, chided Democrats for opposing any potential cuts in benefits. "In 1983, under the Democrat leadership, the solution [to Social Security's problems] included cutting benefits," plus raising taxes, Rep. Thomas said.

But 1983 wasn't a halcyon time of bipartisan Washington comity. Far from it. It was a polarized, angry political era. In a few ways, it was a time much like today.

Prior to settling down to negotiations, Sen. Daniel P. Moynihan (D) of New York accused Republicans of "terrorizing older people" with their proposals. GOP Sen. William Armstrong of Colorado struck back, charging Democrats with "demagoguery."

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