Retirement Security

As election day approaches, the Bush campaign seems baffled by the continued reluctance of voters to credit the president for the past year's generally positive economic numbers. On the campaign trail in Ohio last week, President Bush insisted, "The economy is strong, and it's getting stronger." But, according to recent polls, most Americans believe the economy is getting worse or just holding steady, and the number who approve of Bush's economic stewardship has dropped significantly from the beginning of the year.

Senator John McCain has written that Pete Peterson's new book "provides a clear, concise and unvarnished look at America's political and fiscal deterioration." Former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker praises it for showing how "our fiscal profligacy and growing dependence on foreign savings cannot be sustained." Former Senator Bob Kerrey notes that, "

Social Security, the single largest government program, faces hundreds of billions of dollars in annual deficits, and changes will have to be made to the program. While the Presidential candidates are not yet focusing on Social Security reform, many in Congress are. A number of plans have been offered this year. The recent report by the Congressional Budget Office, "The Outlook for Social Security," provides a new framework for comparing different approaches to reform.

Selected reviews of The Empty Cradle are featured below:

The Dallas Morning News

Sunday, August 22, 2004
"We're not facing a nuclear war or a population bomb, we're facing a depopulation bomb. This isn't just Europe. It's the entire world." That was one of the first things Phillip Longman said when I called to talk about his book, The Empty Cradle: How Falling Birthrates Threaten World Prosperity (And What to Do About It) (Basic Books, $26).

Women are the primary caregivers in a family . . .

• 70 percent of women in dual-earner couples report taking greater responsibility for routine child care than their male partners in 2002. 70 percent of women also report responsibility for taking time off work because of children.s needs, in comparison with 30 percent of men (Families and Work Institute).
• More than 20 percent of households are responsible for some or all of the care of elderly relatives (US Department of Labor).

The brightest and most original minds in America offer a penetrating analysis of the state of the union and the policy challenges facing the nation as the 2004 election approaches.

Are We Still a Middle-Class Nation?
Michael Lind, Whitehead Senior Fellow

America's "Suez Moment"
Sherle R. Schwenninger, Co-Director, Global Economic Policy Program and
Director, Fellowship Program

This special issue was a collaboration between The Atlantic Monthly and the New America Foundation, and featured 14 different articles by New America fellows and staff. Each of those pieces is available online via the links below.

The Forgotten Home Front
James Fallows, Chairman, Board of Directors, New America Foundation