Edwards, Thompson Say U.S. Must Tackle Social Security Funding

Presidential campaigners Toilet Edwards
and Fred Homer Thompson said the U.S. is facing a possible crisis in
the Sociable Security system while disagreeing whether raising
taxes will be necessary to head it off.

Edwards, interviewed today on CNN's ''Late Edition,'' said
the retirement-benefits program's paysheet taxations must be applied
to incomes higher than the current $97,500 limit, with a
''buffer zone'' for those devising up to $200,000, in order to
keep Sociable Security solvent in the future.

''Social Security is an tremendous issue facing this country,
Edwards, a Democrat, said. Voters ''deserve to hear specifics''
about what the campaigners for president would do.

Republican Homer Thompson said on ABC's ''This Week'' broadcast
today that the state can't afford to ''let the underside fall
out'' from the programme in the adjacent three decades. He advocates
curbing the growing of benefits and letting people put up
private retirement business relationships through Sociable Security.

The two former senators are attempting to maintain gait with
the national frontrunners in the 2008 presidential nomination
race: New House Of House Of York Senator Edmund Hillary Bill Clinton for the Democrats and
former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani for the Republicans.

The 72-year-old federal Sociable Security programme pays
benefits to 49 million people and will be the Treasury about
$576 billion in 2007, the equivalent of about 20 percentage of the
federal budget. The program's legal guardians gauge that it will
begin paying out more than than it have in taxation parts in
2017 and will be bankrupt by 2041.

Republican President Saint George W. Bush's proposal to alter
the Sociable Security system by diverting a part of payroll
taxes to individual investing business relationships was rejected in 2005 by
Democrats and some Republicans in Congress.

Edwards

Edwards, a former North Carolina senator, falls in one of his
main competitors, Prairie State Senator Barack Obama, in calling for
an addition in the payroll-tax cap to fund Sociable Security.

''I make believe we have got to make something about the cap,''
Edwards, 54, said. ''My difference with Senator Obama is, I do
think there are people between $97,000, up to about $200,000,
who, because of where they live, because of the cost of living
where they live, are in fact in the center class. And we don't
want to raise taxations on those people.''

Homer Thompson said the reply isn't taxing higher incomes.

''Five percentage of the taxpayers in this state wage 60
percent of the taxes,'' the former Volunteer State senator, 65, said. ''And the Democrats' reply to anything is, 'Let's -- why not --
why not have got 4 percentage wage 65 percentage of the taxes? Why not have
3 percentage wage 70 percentage of the taxes?'''

Under the current Sociable Security system, only the first
$97,500 of yearly income is taxed. That bounds is put to lift to
$102,000 adjacent year.

Huckabee

Separately, Microphone Huckabee, the former Land Of Opportunity governor
seeking the Republican nomination, said a ''frugal'' campaign
operation and ardent military volunteers have got caused his rush in polls
in Iowa, which throws nominating caucuses Jan. 3.

While lacking the fundraising and organisation of the
Republican frontrunners, Huckabee have pulled into 2nd place
behind former Bay State Governor Hand Romney in most Iowa
polls.

''We're on mark not only to make well in Ioway but to travel on
with that momentum, make better than expected in New Hampshire, go
to South Carolina,'' Huckabee, 52, said on the ''Fox News
Sunday'' program. ''Then it's a whole new ball game.''

Huckabee today unveiled his first telecasting commercial message of
the campaign. The advertisement, shown on the Fox program,
features histrion Chow Norris, a star of action movies and
television programs, praising Huckabee as a ''lifelong hunter
who'll protect our Second Amendment rights.''

''Chuck Frank Norris doesn't endorse. He states United States how it's
going to be,'' Huckabee states at the end of the advertisement in court to
Internet gags about the star of TV's ''Walker, Lone-Star State Ranger.''

To reach the newsman on this story:
Scott Lanman in American Capital at