[July 15, 2011] PRES. OBAMA: SHERROD BROWN'S EXACTLY RIGHT Tweet Jul 15, 2011 (Congressional Documents and Publications/ContentWorks via COMTEX) -- Friday, July 15, 2011 Contact: Meghan Dubyak 202-224-3978 PRES. OBAMA: SHERROD BROWN'S EXACTLY RIGHT Earlier this Week, Brown Raised Concerns Over Raising Retirement Age for Ohio Workers; Introduced Measure that Would Require Members of Congress to Make Same Sacrifices Being Asked of Working Americans *WATCH THE VIDEO http://www.wsbtv.com/news/28551274/detail.html * *READ MORE ABOUT SHERROD BROWN'S "MODEST PROPOSAL http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/plum-line/post/a-modest-proposal-congress-should-get-retirement-benefits-at-same-age-as-the-rest-of-us/2011/03/03/gIQAVEFvAIblog.html "* WASHINGTON, D.C. - In an exclusive interview conducted yesterday, President Obama responded to Sen. Sherrod Brown's concern over raising the retirement age for Ohio workers, saying "Sherrod Brown's exactly right." Earlier this week, Brown introduced legislation that would require Members of Congress to make the same sacrifices that could be asked of working Americans by tying the age at which Members of Congress can collect their federal pensions to the Social Security retirement age. In an exclusive interview with Cox News' Scott MacFarlane conducted for WHIO-TV (Dayton) and WTOV-TV (Wheeling-Steubenville), Pres. Obama was asked about Brown's concerns over what raising the retirement age would mean to Ohioans who stand on their feet all day long in a restaurant or on a factory floor: COX NEWS: "Interesting remarks from Senator Sherrod Brown, who told us, I'm quoting here: "Raising the Social Security retirement age might sound fair to politicians who wear jackets and ties everyday who come into to an air-conditioned office - who can easily work into their 70s or 80s - but how does it sound to a 40-year-old steelworker with bad knees and a bad back from being on the job, in Pittsburgh, in Middletown, Ohio, in Weirton, WV?" PRES. OBAMA: I think Sherrod Brown's exactly right. That's why we said that we can't ask for sacrifices from working people who haven't seen a raise in some cases for a decade and not ask anything from folks like myself who can afford to give a little bit more. That's why it's so important for us to have a balanced approach to this process. Brown is author of the Shared Retirement Sacrifice Act of 2011, which would amend the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) and Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) to directly tie the Social Security retirement age to current and future Members of Congress' access to their federal retirement benefits. "Raising the Social Security retirement age might sound fair to politicians who come to work every day in a suit and tie, but it's a nonstarter for working Ohioans who stand on their feet all day long in a restaurant or on a factory floor," Brown said. "Social Security is under attack by those who falsely think it adds to the federal deficit. It's time for Washington politicians to make the same sacrifices that they're proposing for millions of Americans. If these politicians want to ask Americans to continue working into their late 60s and early 70s before receiving critical retirement benefits, there's no reason why they shouldn't have to make the same sacrifices as well." Currently, Members of Congress can begin collecting pensions as early as age 50, while working Americans cannot collect full Social Security benefits until age 66. According to the Congressional Research Service (CRS), retirement with an immediate, full pension is available to Members of Congress covered under FERS at age 62 or older with at least five years of federal service; at age 50 or older with at least 20 years of service; and at any age to Members with at least 25 years of service. For Members covered by CSRS, retirement with an immediate, full pension is available to Members age 60 or older with 10 years of service in Congress, or age 62 with five years of civilian federal service, including service in Congress. Brown strongly opposes raising the retirement age for Social Security due to the high number of Ohioans who are engaged in physically demanding work--on a shop floor, production line, or farmland. Brown has long been active in efforts to protect Social Security from privatization, and has worked to ensure that seniors can continue to afford necessities like prescription drugs despite the lack of cost-of-living-adjustments (COLA) that Social Security recipients have faced for the past two years. As of 2009, the median retiree Social Security benefit is $14,000. Social Security lifts more than half a million http://brown.senate.gov/newsroom/pressreleases/release/?id=a117f7a2-6d81-4c3e-bfb4-7575bbe08492 Ohio seniors out of poverty. [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]