James Hyatt, GermantownThe debate over President Donald Trump’s strikes on Iran has quickly turned into a familiar ritual. Geoffrey Brand, WashingtonSave Social SecurityRamesh Ponnuru’s Feb. 26 op-ed, “Don’t save social security,” deserves credit for elevating Social Security’s urgent financial challenge and offering constructive ideas to address it. But it’s far from clear that “few Americans would design [Social Security] as it currently is” if they could build the program from scratch. As Ponnuru observed, the highest benefits Social Security provides are larger than needed, while the lowest should be strengthened. Major demographic shifts in recent decades mean workers must ultimately contribute somewhat more to Social Security during their careers.

Source: Washington Post March 04, 2026 21:42 UTC