Say what?

OK fine, call it a tax - it is in the generic sense of the word, though by design it was/is intended to something more akin to an insurance premium.

I think you may be confused by the phrase "gen revenue"? It doesnt refer to the entire pot of $$$$ going into federal coffers..........it means tax or other revenue that is collected by govt for general purposes, as opposed to a trust fund or entitlement which is paid into for specific purposes - eg workers comp, Meidcare, FICA, etc.

BTW, "entitlement" is not the bad work repubs make it out to be. It means simply that since you paid into it you are "entitled" to the benefits. As opposed to welfare programs, which must be allocated out of the general funds and is at the mercy of the political whims of the day.

Hate to break it to you but if youre saying SS is, or should be a welfare program coming out of gen funds - THAT is the right winger POV.

Now, to further confuse the issue there has been in recent years smaller amts of $$$ transfered from gen funds into SS trust fund (eg interest on loans taken out of SS funds) but thats a conversation for another day.

The point is - SS needs to be strengthened, not whittled away or defunded by diverting some $$$ to Wall Street or weakened or made into a welfare program.

All I can say is I wish I lived in the alt universe where AL GORE was president and the FICA funds all went into the lock box.