Rick Perry Stands to Rake in the Dough via Our Tax Dollars
November 7, 2011 at 4:48 PM Leave a comment
Don’t get me wrong. I have nothing against pensions or Social Security or Medicare but I do have a problem with a man who is against all those things taking them for himself. Then again, Rick Perry wants us to believe he’s a man of conviction so when he retires he’ll probably stay true to his word and refuse all these “government handouts:”
As a Texas governor and presidential candidate, Rick Perry has repeatedly turned to the marketplace for policy solutions to health care and retirement security.
But as a private citizen, Perry has generally relied on the government.
Perry is a member of what the Texas Employees Retirement System (ERS) calls “the elected class,” which provides the kind of lucrative pension benefits that have all but disappeared from the private sector.
Under its provisions, Perry, 61, could have retired at age 50 with lifetime health care paid for by the state. To the annoyance of his opponents, he is still in office — and every year he stays will benefit him in the long run.
If Perry retires at the end of his current term, in 2014, he would be eligible to collect as much as $119,025 a year, according to calculations based on 30 years of elective service and optional provisions. Perry will also receive Social Security, which could swell his total public pension benefits to more than $140,000 annually.
The state pays 100 percent of the cost of state employees’ health insurance premiums, and Perry, an Air Force veteran, has had access to taxpayer-supported care since he joined the Texas A&M Corps of Cadets in 1968. He is entitled to state-financed health care for the rest of his life and will be eligible for Medicare after his current term expires.
Pretty nice huh? But again, I’m sure Perry will turn all of this down. Oh, wait. Maybe he won’t. Maybe he won’t because Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid are only referred to as “handouts” or “entitlements” when the 99% are getting them. Otherwise they’re referred to as something along the lines of “earned benefits.” So hey, we shall see.
Entry filed under: Republicans, Including Wingers & "Moderates", Financial Crisis, We the People, Our Tax Dollars, 2012 Election, Corporatocracy, Fascist America, Seniors/Retirement/SS, Repression. Tags: .
Trackback this post | Subscribe to the comments via RSS Feed