Congress Eyeing Retirement Funds __ Your Retirement Funds

From Powerline's John Hinderaker:

Are the
Feds Trying to Nationalize Your Retirement Savings?

For some time, there have been rumblings that the federal government
might try to solve its budgetary problems by nationalizing (i.e.,
stealing) the money that millions of Americans have set aside for
retirement in 401(k) plans and the like. One way they might do this is
to confiscate the cash on hand in exchange for a promise to make future
payments in the form of an "annuity." An involuntary annuity, in that
scenario.

I haven't taken this speculation too seriously, mostly because the
core of the Democratic Party consists of lawyers, and a lawyer's most
precious possession is his 401(k) account. One of those who have taken
the threat more seriously is Congresswoman Michele Bachmann, who
co-authored a letter warning the Obama administration against any
attempt to confiscate Americans' retirement savings. You can read the
letter here.
It says, in part:

In the Annual Report of the White House Task Force on the Middle
Class, Vice President Biden discussed at length the creation of
so-called "Guaranteed Retirement Accounts (GRAs)" which would provide
protection from "inflation and market risk" and potentially "guarantee a
specified real return above the rate of inflation" -- presumably at
taxpayer expense. ...

The Vice President's comments are troubling, insofar as they come on
the heels of testimony before Congress from supporters of GRAs proposing
to eliminate the favorable tax treatment currently afforded to 401(k)
plans, and instead use those dollars to fund government-invested GRAs
into which all employees would be required to contribute a portion of
their salary -- again, with a government subsidy. These advocates
would, essentially, dismantle the present private-sector 401(k) system,
replacing it instead with a government-run investment plan, the size and
scope of which remain to be seen. (read on )

Write every representative you have and make it clear that fooling with people's retirement savings fund will be political suicide.
hat tip to The Instapundit.