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News -03-04-05 Republicans to Re-Assert Changes to Social Security (MSNBC News) "“Americans are beginning to have a good understanding the system won’t be there unless we act soon,” he [Secretary of the Treasury John Snow] said." "In their annual report last year, the Social Security trustees said, 'Present tax rates would be sufficient to pay 73 percent of scheduled benefits after trust fund exhaustion in 2042 and 68 percent of scheduled benefits in 2078.' " "Meanwhile on Thursday Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan praised the virtues of a consumption tax, which economists such as Laurence Kotlikoff have argued would be one equitable way to help pay the staggering cost of unfunded liabilities for Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security." "According to the General Accountability Office, the government’s fiscal watchdog, the federal government’s net liabilities, unfunded commitments, and other obligations now amount to more than $43 trillion, or about $350,000 for every full-time worker." 3-05