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Another Perspective
A Liberal Evangelical Resigns From AARP
Not everyone on the left is in denial about the nation’s fiscal crisis.
Unlike many figures of the Evangelical and Religious Left, Ron Sider of Evangelicals for Social Action (ESA) has sustained an integrity that many conservatives have grudgingly admired. Unlike many of his activist cohorts, he has not prevaricated on Christian teachings about sex, marriage, or abortion. And unlike many of his fellow religionists on the left, Sider has maintained a rigorous concern for the global persecution of Christians when others prefer silence over criticism of Islamist or communist regimes.
Now Sider, as he nears retirement from 40 years as ESA founder and head, has again distinguished himself by dissenting from the Religious Left on the untouchable sacredness of the federal welfare and entitlement state. Sider has very publicly resigned from the Association of Retired People (AARP) to protest its refusal to compromise on entitlement reform.
Calling AARP “selfish and guilty of intergenerational injustice,” Sider chides the self-professed lobby for seniors over its adamant opposition to any reform of Social Security and Medicare. He notes that the “federal government spends about $4 on every senior over 65 and only $1 on every child under 18.” And he notes that the 22 percent poverty rate for children percent is much higher than the 9.7 percent rate for seniors.
Sider describes what is obvious to most but still resisted by much of the Religious Left. “We have a large, unsustainable federal budget deficit,” he writes for Huffington Post. “If we continue current patterns, by 2025 all federal income will be needed simply to pay for Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid (health care for poor Americans) and interest on the national debt!”
Specifically Sider criticizes AARP for opposing any increases in Medicare payments even by wealthier seniors or requiring co-payments for “unnecessary use of doctor visits and medical tests by seniors.” He also complains that AARP opposes any reduction in Social Security payments for wealthier seniors. Sider asked: “Is there any reason why a senior with a total income (Social Security plus other income) of $100,000 should not pay income tax on all of their Social Security income?”
Sider is rhetorically unsparing: “The AARP is a selfish lobby demanding things for seniors even though modest sacrifices would help us reduce the deficit and enable us to spend more on crucial things like better education for our children.” He implores seniors to rise above “selfish” interests and “make some sacrifices for our children and grandchildren.” And he urges other seniors who care about “intergenerational justice” to follow his example in quitting AARP.
This denunciation of AARP and call for entitlement reform contrasts with the atmospherics of the “Circle of Protection” of 2011, when religious groups effectively sided with President Obama against congressional Republicans during the federal debt ceiling crisis. A coalition of Jim Wallis’ Sojourners, the National Association of Evangelicals, National Council of Churches, U.S. Catholic Conference of Bishops, and Sider’s ESA urged tax increases and denounced any spending limits affecting “low-income people” in pursuit of deficit reduction. “Circle” representatives met with President Obama, who presumably welcomed the impression of their aligning with his opposition to entitlement reform.
In fairness to Sider, the “Circle’s” official statement specified protections for low income recipients of entitlements. And Sider is now asking for reforms affecting upper income seniors. But few of the other “Circle” participants are forcefully echoing Sider’s demand for responsible Medicare and Social Security reform. And few are likely to.
More typical of the Religious Left is a critic of Sider’s AARP stance who opined his response in Christian Century. Robert D. Francis is a lobbyist with Lutheran Services in America, which seems to have endorsed the “Circle.” He complains that Sider pits “investments” in seniors against those of children.
“Such thinking leaves out other ways America spends its money — the military, tax breaks that largely benefit the wealthy and corporations,” Francis complains. “It also assumes a fixed overall level of public investment, as though we as a society could not decide that we should actually pay for the level of government that we say we want.” He frets over Sider’s “false choice” of throwing “today’s seniors overboard, or tomorrow’s children.”
Francis also has faith that Obamacare will reduce health care costs and alleviate pressure on Medicare. Faith indeed. He hopes Sider “rethinks his rhetoric of ‘greedy geezers’ and intergenerational conflict, whether or not he tapes his AARP card back together.”
Most Religious Leftists like Francis think more Big Government, fueled by tax increases, will solve impending national insolvency caused by Big Government. Naturally they resent their colleague Sider’s disputing their illogic. Sider has had his own infatuations with Big Government over the decades. But he is sufficiently theologically grounded to understand there’s nothing sensible, much less Godly, in flirting with bankruptcy and defrauding one generation to retain the political allegiance of another.
About the Author
Mark Tooley is president of the Institute on Religion and Democracy in Washington, D.C. and author of Methodism and Politics in the Twentieth Century. You can follow him on Twitter @markdtooley.
Gary B| 2.22.13 @ 6:48AM
Well, well... a liberal with a conscience. Who would have thought?
JD| 2.22.13 @ 11:45AM
Is he still a liberal, though? It sounds like he's renounced liberalism in practice, if not in name.
Appleby| 2.22.13 @ 7:00AM
And yet another person whining that "theChildren" should take precedence over everything, while still (no doubt) pouring massive "funding" into abortion on demand, birth control and sterilization to make sure there aren't any more kids than we have. I would whisper a few words in his shell-like ear, "If you'd start standing up for the right of children to be born, and these children were brought up by Fifties Parents who made sure they trod the straight and narrow, went to church regularly, got educated, graduated, married, and produced more children, the United States would soon be back on its feet. Oh, and look ahead. The Baby Boom is a bulge in the python; as we reach every milestone, Government stands aghast because it has forgotten there are 75 million of us and whatever age we happen to be, what we need and want is going to dominate. Stop trying to shape the world as if the Baby Boom is the Norm. It isn't and it has never been the norm. Shape the world for three generations behind us. THAT is the world y'all are going to live in.
delahaya| 2.22.13 @ 9:51AM
In fairness to Ron, he is against abortion, etc. He is pointing out the imbalance. That said, if he is against abortion, gay marriage, and huge government entitlements, then why is he still a liberal?
Al Adab| 2.22.13 @ 11:03AM
Now that sir is a good question. How is it that so many who oppose the items you list still maintain their Democrat/liberal credentials? How can anyone, who considers themself a believer (Christian, Moslem, Jew) hold to the Dem party? It is philosophically inconsistent to do so.
Al Adab| 2.22.13 @ 8:36AM
AARP entices people into their ranks through their relationship with various insurance plans. AARP then claims that everyone who buys from a connected firm is an AARP member so the lobbying strength grows. There are many alternatives, other insurance programs and other senior lobbying groups which, unlike AARP, does not espouse leftist causes and harm their own members. Avoid AARP.
Occam's Tool| 2.23.13 @ 3:59PM
I belong to AMAC. I will be letting my AARP lapse soon.
Hardcard| 2.22.13 @ 8:56AM
WTF is the religious left ? Is that like homosexual female bishops that think abortion is a blessing (Episcopalian) Or maybe rev.al sharpton that think religion is for profit (shakedowns) and hating whitey), maybe homosexual priests (Catholic) sodomizing their (young men and boys) flock, how about the very hateful rev. jerimiah wright condeming America and being obamadingo's father confessor is that what you mean? AARP is a socialist scheme to control the old and misinformed. We are fluked.
SUBVET| 2.22.13 @ 10:37AM
Mr. card.....you could put AARP & the MASONS in the same boat......float that boat out to sea and sink it.
C. Vernon Crisler | 2.22.13 @ 9:41AM
Sider has always been a socialist. He used to talk about rich Christians in an age of hunger or something along those lines. Don't make the mistake of thinking that Sider's prescriptions are anything more than attempts at wealth redistribution.
delahaya| 2.22.13 @ 9:53AM
That's a good point, Sider is simply saying the redistribution is not even and is out of whack - he is not saying redistribution should stop. Still, the man does have some integrity even if his prescriptions are wrong - and that is refreshing to see on anyone on the left.
A. C. Santore| 2.22.13 @ 10:22AM
This is surely the Age of Deception, and the AARP is one of the most slick practitioners.
The AARP betrayed the retired persons they claim to support when they went along to get along with the Obama administration by supporting "Obamacare," going along with the murder of Medicare Advantage in order to replace it with their own stable of private insurers.
Who lost in this exchange? Not AARP. Retired persons lost. Big time.
And all with AARP's straight faced deception.
Shery| 2.22.13 @ 12:09PM
We did not join AARP because of their politics. I'm happy to see someone has some common sense, but too bad he didn't wield it during the ObamaCare hearings.
Old Guy | 2.22.13 @ 12:18PM
I'm an 87-year-old who wrote AARP several years ago suggesting at least a means test for the annual cost of living increase. It took months to get an answer from anyone who sounded like they might have actually read my original letter. The representative at their booth at the state fair assured me that any give at all would mean the end of social security. I tore up my card and have my insurance elsewhere.
sotto voce| 2.25.13 @ 4:39PM
When AARP sent me my first card several years ago (with a dues solicitation) I cut up the card and wrote a note telling them specifically why I hated their politics, demanding to be taken off their mailing list. I returned the cut-up card and note in their postage-paid envelope. I haven't heard from them since. Good riddance.
David T| 2.22.13 @ 1:58PM
Sider published his redistributionist tome "Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger: A Biblical Study", in 1977. Not long after that, David Chilton, a conservative theologian, self-taught economist, and extremely gifted writer responded with a withering critique in "Productive Christians in an Age of Guilt-Manipulators: A Biblical Response to Ronald J. Sider". The two men engaged in a series of dueling editions of their books until Chilton died much too soon in 1997. As a result of their debate, Sider has moved rightward from socialism and embraced a more free-market approach to economics.
gazinya | 2.23.13 @ 9:26AM
The word 'religion' like the word 'God' carries a great deal of baggage. 'In GOD We Trust' is the motto of the U.S.A but what is the name of that 'God'? Many people have many ideas about the word 'God' and whatever 'religions' may spring from that word.
In the days of old, those days we used to call 'before christ', there were Egyptian gods, Persian gods, Hitite gods, Jewish god, Roman gods, Greetian gods, Hindu gods and surrounding these gods were 'religions'. Everybody had a religion and everybody thought their religion to be superior to any other religion. Religion provided a politcal and cultural cover for base human behavior.
Jesus, one day met a woman of a different religion than Him. A Sameritan woman. He asked her for a drink of water and she said, 'Why do you ask me, a Sameritan, for water? You worship in another place than I. And Jesus said, "God is a Spirit and you shall worship Him in Spirit." Even Jesus did not recognize any religion as worthwhile but individual worship, in Spirit, was the way to salvation.
The Dems and The Obama believe that their 'social justice' religion with a 'collectivist god' is the way. We shall see.
florin| 2.23.13 @ 2:58PM
Feb. 23: as far as I'm concerned, AARP is some sort of Ponzi scheme: they bilk their members out of millions or more. And it's as hard to get out of their organization as it is to get out of a cult. They spend a fortune on tv ads and pamphlets they send out...millions of dollars that could be spent to help seniors. I wish they would be shut down...they are in business for their own profit and do very little to help seniours...
soljerblue| 2.23.13 @ 10:09PM
I cancelled my AARP membership nine years ago. I still get their we-want-you-back crap mailings. I stuff a bunch of torn up solicitations in their reply envelopes and send it back to them on their dime. Screw them! They're screwing us big time.
Rhoetus| 2.23.13 @ 10:45PM
The first email I received on Nov 4, 2008 was the President of the AARP reminding me to vote for Obama. If this wasn't corruption what is? I never renewed my membership.
Tina Trent | 2.24.13 @ 8:13AM
Living in a retirement center, I know people who work for the geriatric medical service providers. They have jobs in part because of Medicare, but they're universally appalled by the waste they see, and these folks -- the billing clerks, appointment setters, and nurse's assistants -- know that the system is unsustainable.
Seniors abuse benefits, insisting they are entitled, by having paid a fraction of what they will take out, to unlimited access to any medical or quasi-medical attention they demand, at our expense. Real and illegitimate medical providers rake it in big. Doctor shopping, endless second consultations, more teeth cleanings than necessary -- seniors stop in for constant treatments, and doctors bill us for redundant and unnecessary care because they can. It has become accepted culture ( a "right") and the unseen fraud driving the system.
Like other out-of-control entitlements, the sickest often find themselves least able to get help because they lack the resources and energy to advocate for themselves, as with disability where the chronically ill are in the back of the line behind the loud and lazy using the system as a cash cow via psychiatric and ADHD child claims.
This is the dirty secret of Medicare, and I haven't seen anyone, not even the Tea Party, for whom I otherwise have great respect, address it. Instead they oppose Obamacare while demanding that this system of socialized and wasteful medical bureaucracy remain sacrosanct.
Rich D| 2.25.13 @ 1:41AM
If AARP lowers their eligibility age any more, babies will be able to join.
snowwwizard| 2.25.13 @ 2:17AM
Please be careful not to paint too broad a stroke as you describe Lutherans as liberal/progressive. Some will think that includes all Lutherans - and that is distinctly incorrect. The LSA is affiliated with the ELCA, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America ( think homosexual ordination and equating man with apes ). The Lutheran Church Missouri Synod ( LCMS ) is conservative; outspokenly so.