Comic Lewis Black is very much not a Republican on most political matters, which makes this riff on fiscal responsibility all the more humorous.
Black riffed on myriad issues of politics with late-night host Seth Meyers Tuesday. He poked fun at the intransigence of Washington lawmaking in talking about the urgency of making changes to the Social Security system, which faces a financial crisis in the near future.
“We gotta do something. We gonna do something? No!” he said, laughing. “Everything is gonna be fine until whatever it is, 2027, which they act is like a million years away — it’s like 10 minutes.”
“We’re growing older as a country. Raise the age of retirement from 65 to 67. That’s simple,” Black continued. “Not now, but do it. Just do it!”
Based on current law, the retirement age is in fact already scheduled to rise to 67 by the year 2022. It is currently 66 for those born between 1943 and 1954.
The Social Security and Medicare Boards of Trustees reported last year that the Social Security trust funds were on track to become insolvent by 2033. Putting off reform of the system could adversely affect younger Americans.
“Substantial further delay risks further concentrating the burdens of correcting the shortfall on the younger workers who already stand to be treated less favorably, thereby undermining Social Security’s efficacy in serving future generations,” the report stated.
Several Republicans in recent years have responded, speaking of or proposing solutions. Then-House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) has said that “eventually getting the retirement age to 70 is a step that needs to be taken,” and a trio of GOP senators, including Kentucky’s Rand Paul, has introduced legislation to that effect.
Koch brothers enthusiast and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said in 2011, however, that he would only be willing “to take a look” at Social Security reform “two decades from now.”
During his sit-down with Meyers, Black also proposed a tongue-in-cheek solution for reforming the country’s immigration system: telling prospective immigrants that America is actually sort of lousy.
“Say, ‘This is a dump!'”
