(CNSNews.com) - President Bush says the nation has an obligation to solve problems before they become acute. He was talking about the Social Security program, which is about to be overwhelmed by retiring baby boomers.

"We will not raise payroll taxes to solve this problem," he told reporters at the White House on Thursday.

The president said he realizes it will take a bipartisan effort to make changes, and he reassured retirees and people nearing retirement that nothing will change for them. "But for the sake of our younger workers...we must be willing to address this problem," he said.

President Bush wants younger workers to be allowed to set aside some of their Social Security payroll taxes in private investment accounts, which those younger workers would own.

Critics point to the "transition costs" of moving to such a system, but on Thursday, President Bush indicated that doing nothing is unacceptable.

He said he's counting on the Social Security trustees, with whom he met on Thursday, to convince the American public and Congress that now is the time to act.

"I look forward to working with Congress to address this issue in a straightforward manner," he said.

"I think what's really important in the discussion is to understand the size of the problem." He said the present value of Social Security's unfunded liabilities is about $11 trillion dollars.

"I will not prejudge any solution," President Bush said. "I think it's very important for the first step to be a common understanding of the size of the problem; and then for members of both parties to come together and listen to the options available."

President Bush noted that the Moynihan commission studied the problem in detail - and he said that much of his thinking has been colored by that commission's "creative suggestions."

It was almost three years ago to the day that President Bush's 16-member, bipartisan Social Security reform commission raised the idea of letting younger Americans set up personal retirement accounts.


See Earlier Story:
Social Security Reform Plans Emphasize Women, Poor (11 Dec. 2001)