Under Reagan came the idea of putting your pension plan in the stock market, which wasn't a guaranteed pension.
Sentiment: NEGATIVE
Anyone with a pension or retirement is an investor in the stock market.
After World War II, there were a lot of pension funds in Europe that were fully funded, but they were pressured to hold a lot of government debt. There was a lot of inflation, and the value of all those assets fell. Those pension funds couldn't honor their promises to the people.
People don't place their trust in government or company pension plans; they have to be self-reliant.
A lot of the money in the stock market is really our national retirement plan, for better or worse.
When I was young, many people worked for a company with a pension plan that covered them for as long as they lived. If they didn't have a pension plan, they could count on Social Security and Medicare.
You can't be a progressive and be opposed to pension reform.
Most private-sector folks don't get a pension.
Pension reforms, like investment advice and automatic enrollment, will strengthen the ability of Americans to save and invest for retirement.
We really haven't had very much experience with people funding their retirement out of the stock market, and we don't know, frankly, how it would work under every scenario.
A pension is nothing more than deferred compensation.