Wisconsin U.S. Senate race: Kevin Nicholson floats mean-testing and raising age for Social Security

Bill Glauber | Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

When it comes to talking about Social Security, first-time Republican U.S. Senate candidate Kevin Nicholson is not afraid to offer a solution.

During interviews on the campaign trail, he has proposed changes to maintain Social Security's solvency, including a gradual rise in the retirement age for those who are now years from retirement.

“If you’re receiving Social Security or you’re close to retirement, there should be absolutely no change in the program whatsoever,” Nicholson told the Tomah Journal in a recent interview.

While the issue hasn't drawn much attention in the Republican Party Aug. 14 primary, where Nicholson is battling state Sen. Leah Vukmir, it may emerge as a flashpoint in the November general election.

Democratic U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin is a strong proponent of the program.

Some of Nicholson's more explicit remarks on Social Security came in the Tomah Journal interview. He said younger people who are many years away from retirement "should be incentivized to save in defined contribution plans that actually allow them to grow their wealth throughout their entire life.”

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He also discussed mean-testing for those above a certain income threshold.

"We should look at the prospect of means-testing Social Security for those that are not already receiving it or close to receiving it," he added. "That's a totally reasonable answer. Maybe means-testing looks like you get out of Social Security literally to the dollar of what you put into it. That's the way to keep this thing solvent ... "

Asked for more specifics on means-testing, Nicholson's campaign said, "We don’t think millionaires and billionaires should put an unnecessary strain on an already burdened and nearly insolvent system, and sensible people on both sides of the aisle support this concept."

As for raising the age of eligibility for the program, Nicholson's campaign said Social Security, enacted in 1935, was "originally designed to begin after average life expectancy to help people in their final years."

"With the amazing advances of modern medicine, people are living longer. That's a fantastic result, but Social Security needs to adjust slightly for younger Americans as a result," the campaign said.

In an interview with WisconsinEye, Nicholson said that for "those of us that are younger, not yet on Social Security, not yet close to retirement, we should look at indexing the retirement and qualification age to average lifespan."

He added, "To those grandparents out there listening to me, you're going to get lied to by Tammy Baldwin about this. She's going to tell you that I'm out there to take away Social Security. And I'm not. I'm there to save this country for your grandchildren."

Raising the retirement age would be gradual, the campaign said, "and not all at once, which would give younger workers more time to prepare while sparing them a future of drowning in debt."

The campaign did not specify the birth year where changes in the program would be made.

Vukmir has only spoken in general terms about Social Security.

"It is part of a national conversation that we're going to have to have," she told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Thursday. "But I'm not going to touch anything for people at or near retirement age. I think young people are already looking at it and wondering what's going to be there for them."

For her part, Baldwin opposes means-testing and a hike in the retirement age. She wants billionaires and millionaires to pay the same rate in taxes to fund Social Security, her campaign said. Currently, the maximum amount of taxable earnings is $128,400.

She also wants to make sure benefit adjustments more aggressively match the actual cost-of-living changes.

In a statement, Baldwin said: "For over one million seniors and veterans in Wisconsin, Social Security is a promise that must be kept. Too many Wisconsinites are already struggling to make ends meet, so we should be looking at commonsense solutions that protect and strengthen Social Security and boost people's earned benefits, not financial gimmicks pushed by special interests that undermine this promise and cut Wisconsinites' Social Security."