Sharron Angle is further clarifying her calls for the privatization of Social Security, saying that Chile has done it successfully. That is, Angle is now speaking favorably of a system that was enacted by a military dictator.
“So when I said private, that’s what I meant — that I thought we would have to go just to the private sector just for a template on how this is supposed to be done,” Angle told the CBS affiliate in Las Vegas. “However, I’ve seen been studying, and Chile has done this.”
The station noted that Chile’s private pensions system, which was originally enacted by the military dictator Augusto Pinochet, has been criticized for being subject to market volatility, though its proponents argue that it gives all citizens a stake in the market.
The Associated Press points out another wrinkle — that Chile has been moving toward a greater government role in the private system: “However, the pension system established in 1981 by right-wing Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet is no longer a fully private system. Chile’s system was revamped in 2008 to expand public pensions for groups left out of its system, including low-income seniors.”
And just think of all those Tea Partiers comparing Obama to Hitler on health care.
The TPM Poll Average gives Harry Reid a lead of 45.7%-42.6%.
Eric Kleefeld
Eric Kleefeld joined TPM as an intern for the final months of the 2006 midterm elections, and then kept showing up for work. His other interests include guitars, old comic books and the politics of various English-speaking countries.
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