Let’s think about the kind of mess that we’re in. Federal 2010 Medicare and Medicaid expenditures totaled $800 billion. The projected annual growth of both programs is about 7 percent. Social Security expenditures are more than $700 billion a year.

According to the 2009 Social Security and Medicare trustees reports, by 2030, 49 percent of federal revenues will go toward Social Security and Medicare payments. The unfunded liability of both programs is already $106 trillion.