VOLUME No: 63 Issue No:5

Washington, D.C. - July 30, 2004

Social Security Reform

The Social Security Administration recently reported that beginning in 2018, the current Social Security system will not be able to deliver its promised benefits. In order to provide these benefits, payroll taxes would have to rise by more than 50% or benefits would have to be cut by a third.

An alternative to raising taxes or cutting benefits is establishing personal retirement accounts. A bill sponsored by Reps. Sam Johnson (R-TX), Pat Toomey (R-PA), and Jeff Flake (R-AZ) would allow workers to save 6.2% of their payroll tax into these types of accounts. This gives workers more control over their retirement policies by allowing them to choose to invest in a group of widely held funds. Congress is likely to address this issue by early 2005.

9/11 Report Assigns Blame, Makes Recommendations

This week, the 9/11 Commission released its “Final Report of the National
Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States”. Commissioned by
Congress, this report was bipartisan, having been approved by every Democratic and Republican member of the committee.

The 9/11 Commission investigated the activities of al Qaeda from the 1990s up
through the tragic terrorist attacks of September 11th, 2001. The bin Laden
inspired attacks are blamed on several factors, including unsuccessful diplomacy, a lack of military options, inefficient use of intelligence resources, porous border and aviation security, and a lack of focus on terrorism in general particularly al Qaeda.

Some of the key recommendations include the creation of a National Intelligence Director, a reorganization of Congressional oversight committees, and the establishment of a National Counterterrorism Center, designed to integrate intelligence from all sources. While several of the recommendations have been considered controversial, most analysts expect the suggestions to be acted on very soon.

Senators Push for Drug Re-importation

A bipartisan group of Senators led by Democrat Byron L. Dorgan of North Dakota and Republican moderate Olympia J. Snowe of Maine are proposing a bill that would require the FDA to set up an importation system. It would start with Canada and continue on to Europe and other developed countries within one year of implementation.

There is growing evidence that Americans want lawmakers to pass legislation that would allow Americans to import prescription drugs from countries where the medicines often sell for less than in the United States. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services estimates that drug spending grew at an annual inflation-adjusted rate of 14.5 percent from 1997 to 2002, reaching $162 billion in 2002. The Dorgan-Snowe bill would seek to limit efforts to sidestep an importation system by threatening drug companies with restraint-of-trade violations.

This is an important issue as it directly affects seniors, the most likely voting age group. If one side comes out totally against this proposal, it could have a negative impact in the November elections.

Coburn Takes GOP Primary in Oklahoma

Former three term Oklahoman Representative Thomas Coburn won the Republican nomination for the hotly contested Senate seat to replace retiring Sen. Don Nickles.
Coburn a physician from Muskogee Oklahoma, often considered a GOP maverick, will face off against Democratic candidate Brad Carlson in November. GOP leaders are confident Coburn can keep the Senate seat in Republican hands. Oklahoma is one of 8 states with open Senate seats this fall.

Arizona ballot initiative may create a repeat of
California's Prop. 187 “fight” of 10 years ago

An Arizona group, “Protect Arizona Now,” surprised the Arizona political establishment recently by submitting 190,887 signatures to get an initiative on the November ballot. The total was 50% more than was needed to qualify and was surprising because there had been almost no publicity about the petitions being circulated. One Arizona politician commented that he knew about the petitions but had hoped they would just “rot on the vine” from inattention. This clearly did not happen.

The initiative in question is similar to the infamous Prop.187 that California passed after a heated political fight 10 years ago. It proposes to deny state services to illegal immigrants and provide a way to enforce existing Arizona law which already denies illegal immigrants welfare benefits. Opponents fear that if passed, it would strip away essential services, including basic and emergency health care, and that its effects would be severe, even “draconian.” Arizona, like California, shares a border with Mexico.

To add one more dimension to the upcoming battle, a polarizing political fight in Arizona could have repercussions on the national debate on immigration policy. Members of both parties are shying away from taking overt political stands on the initiative, seeing it as a lose/lose proposition. The California debate of 10 years ago saw the California Republican Party loose significant support from the Latino voters there. Some would say that the demographics are different in Arizona and that the initiative may surprise everyone, just like the petition signatures did.

Latest Polls & Surveys

According to the latest Zogby poll, Democratic nominee John Kerry still holds a slight margin over President Bush in the hypothetical Electoral College. As of July 26,th John Kerry’s lead over the President reached 275-220, falling slightly from a poll released July 10th which showed the Massachusetts Senator’s lead to be 322-205.

The Institute for Social Research, in a survey conducted in conjunction with the University of Michigan found mixed results concerning the treatment of Detroit area Arab Americans.

1,016 Arab Americans were survey and fifteen percent of them say they personally have had a "bad experience" after the Sept. 11 attacks because of their ethnicity. However, a greater proportion, thirty three percent, have received expressions of support from non-Arabs.

• Other highlights about those polled include:
• 79 percent are US Citizens
• 80 percent speak English well or very well
• 86 percent feel at home in the US
• 91 percent are proud to be American

To read the entire survey, refer to: http://www.umich.edu/news/Releases/2004/Jul04/daas.pdf