madam speaker , this bill proves that the republicans are not just after poor people . 
this pension bill boils down to one fundamental principle : the republicans want all americans , including flight attendants and everybody else out there on a pension , to be entirely alone , isolated from the strength and compassion of american values . 
i am here to say that this pension bill that forces elderly americans into solitary confinement is abusive , irresponsible and morally bankrupt . 
this whole year has been about doing it to people . 
get rid of social security , privatize it , put them on their own . 
medicare : privatize it , put them on their own . 
now we have the pension bill : privatize it , put them on their own . 
take away the union benefit , how will they do it ? 
they are going to boeing . 
they squeeze boeing tight , and boeing flips into 401 ( k ) , and there goes the pension down the drain . 
now this raises the question , what is wrong with you people ? 
we decided a long time ago in this country that there was strength in numbers . 
we had to do things together . 
that is why social security was developed . 
that is why medicare was developed . 
the republican vision articulated in this bill is that america is a sinking ship , and the shout is for every man and woman , you are on your own . 
they call it an ownership society . 
you will still have a pension ; it will be a 401 ( k ) . 
but it really is , you are on your own . 
if you can figure out the market , good luck , baby . 
there are not enough lifeboats in the water , and we know that , and everybody is jumping off the ship . 
in 1980 , 40 percent of employers provided a pension . 
today , only 20 percent do . 
now , that is a 50 percent reduction in 20 years , and the pensions that are provided , fewer provide a guaranteed benefit than they used to get . 
so what do we have left ? 
the stark fact is that half of america 's retirees have less than $ 15 , 000 income . 
imagine living in the united states on $ 15 , 000 after working for 45 years . 
only 50 percent of american households have retirement savings at all , but if they do not have a benefit from the pension and their social security , which has not been ripped away from them , they got nothing . 
now , half of the households who have savings have an average $ 385 a month . 
so they get their social security , $ 1 , 800 a month at the maximum , and $ 385 , oh , they are living fat on $ 2 , 000 a month . 
the people without any savings are disproportionately poor , have nothing except social security , and the republicans , as i say , tried to take that away earlier in the year . 
we beat them on that , and we should beat them on this . 
this is the definition of financial freedom that republicans want for americans : they want riskier pensions and no way for anybody to be sure of anything . 
i urge my colleagues to vote no on this . 
