Jul 14, 2011
Representative Steve King: Putting China before Iowa’s Seniors
Representative Steve King (IA-04) believes we should put China before the needs of Iowa seniors. King introduced legislation today that would require the U.S. government to pay debts to China before ensuring seniors receive the Social Security they count on every month.
The President announced yesterday that if a debt ceiling agreement is not reached, Social Security and veterans benefits checks could be at risk. While the King bill does protect military payments, Representative King nonetheless prioritizes debts owed to China before the economic security of Iowa seniors.
“Representative King would rather protect China than our seniors?” asked Haley Morris of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. “For nearly a decade in Washington, Representative Steve King has attempted to privatize and end Social Security and Medicare. It’s deeply troubling, but not surprising that Representative Steve King is taking his failed agenda to undercut Iowa seniors to a new extreme: putting China before Iowa families.”
Background
Unveiled Bill to Set Priorities for Government Payments. Today, King held a press conference to unveil his legislation titled “The Payment Reliability for our Obligations to Military and Investors to Secure Essential Stability Act. The bill sets payment of military salaries and payment of principal and interest on publicly-held debt as the top priorities if the debt limit is reached.” [Sioux City Journal, 7/13/11]
King’s Bill Does Not Set Social Security or Medicare Payments as Priorities. The bill, HR 2496, makes no mention of Social Security or Medicare payments to seniors. [HR 2496, 7/12/11]
Not Coming to an Agreement on the Debt Ceiling Puts Our Seniors at Risk. In an interview with CBS Evening News, Obama said, “I cannot guarantee that those checks go out on August 3rd if we haven't resolved this issue. Because there may simply not be the money in the coffers to do it.” [Politico, 7/12/11]
U.S.’s Largest Creditor Is China. “China is the largest foreign creditor to the United States, holding more than $1 trillion in Treasury debt as of March, U.S. data shows.” [Reuters, 6/08/11]
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