Social Security is too vital to be lumped into backroom budget talks where the views of ordinary Americans risk going unheard.

Those who want to cut Social Security are prepared to take hostages, manufacture crises, and use scare tactics to undermine the retirement security of Americans.

In South Florida, where there are so many beneficiaries, when Social Security isn't adjusted to reflect their increased costs, that affects their daily lives and their contributions to our local economy.

What's lost in this whole debate, unfortunately, is that Social Security is not a giveaway where we take money to give to other people. It's a contract with the government... that's worked for 75 years. It's the most successful government program that we've ever had.

We believe the risk to be minimal and the only person who would recognize this as a social security number would be the recipient, and in most cases, recipients didn't even notice.

No matter how many times you say Social Security is broke, the reality is that Social Security's independent revenue stream and its Trust Fund's investments maintain the program's solvency until 2037, when it may begin to fall short.