South Kingstown, RI – This morning, U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse visited with local seniors at the South Kingstown Senior Center to hear their concerns and discuss his efforts to prevent cuts to Social Security. In particular, Whitehouse highlighted his opposition to the so-called “chained CPI” proposal included in the President’s budget, which would cut future benefits for Social Security recipients in South Kingstown.
Chained CPI would change the way cost-of-living increases are calculated, making an already insufficient formula even less adequate for our nation’s seniors and gradually cutting Social Security benefits over time. Last week, Senator Whitehouse joined Senator Harkin in introducing a resolution formally opposing the use of chained CPI to calculate cost-of-living adjustments. Congressman David Cicilline (D-RI) introduced a similar resolution in the House of Representatives.
“The chained CPI proposal in President Obama’s budget would jeopardize the security of our nation’s seniors, and I refuse to stand by and watch seniors pay the price for a deficit they had no part in creating,” said Senator Whitehouse. “It was great to hear from South Kingstown seniors this morning, and to have the chance to let them know I’ll keep fighting to make sure their benefits are protected.”
Whitehouse, who is a founding member of the Senate’s Defending Social Security Caucus, has built a strong record of advocacy for Rhode Island seniors. He is a cosponsor of the Keeping Our Social Security Promises Act, which would ensure that Social Security remains solvent for the next 50 years by asking the wealthiest Americans to pay their fair share into the system. He has also argued that the existing formula used to calculate annual cost-of-living adjustments shortchanges seniors, and has called for a more accurate measure of inflation – the opposite of what chained CPI would produce.
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