Washington, DC- "Privatizing Social Security will destroy America's safest source of guaranteed retirement income," said Kourpias, president of the 3 million-member Alliance for Retired Americans, who spoke at the National Press Club with a number of groups opposing the creation of private retirement accounts. "Younger workers are being scared into believing that Social Security is facing a crisis and privatization is the wonder cure. Nothing could be farther from the truth. 

"Seniors don't believe they're immune from benefits cuts and will fight any efforts to undermine the only safe and secure source of retirement income all Americans can and should count on."

The Alliance is a nationwide grassroots organization that advocates on behalf of seniors and figured prominently in the fight against privatizing Medicare. 
Kourpias said that the Social Security system is not broke, nor in the dire trouble pro-privatizers and President Bush would have Americans believe. "Let me remind those naysayers who conspired not to save Social Security but to bury it, that Social Security hasn't missed a paycheck in almost 70 years," he said. "With some changes designed to strengthen and secure the program, Social Security is well-positioned to keep delivering monthly checks to millions of Americans for decades to come."

It's the duty of today's seniors to ensure that guaranteed Social Security benefits are available for generations to come, Kourpias said, because only Social Security guarantees a retirement nest egg is there when people need it.

"We're fighting this fight not just for ourselves, but for our children and especially for our grandchildren," he said. "We can't leave a legacy of debt and that's what privatization is designed to do. It will bleed to death the current Social Security system, drive up already record-high deficits and pass on monstrous debt to future generations. 

"We believe all Americans should count on Social Security's guaranteed benefits as one means to achieving financial security. Creating private accounts by radically changing the way America provides for its own is simply a betrayal of trust. We are prepared to fight to preserve our financial security."