Americans smarter than their president

Americans are definitely smarter than what President Bush thinks of them. While they have clearly indicated that they do not like his version of privatization of Social Security or personal retirement accounts, they understand what is happening to the economy and where they stand. In a survey by Principal Financial Group, when workers were asked to weigh in on current domestic initiatives being addressed by the Bush administration, and their possible impact on the pocketbook, they said the initiatives most impacting their financial well-being are Social Security reform (41%), reforming the tax code (32%) and cutting the national deficit (27%). Respondents clearly see a connection between the national debt and their long-term financial health. An overwhelming 73 percent said they "strongly" or "somewhat agreed" that the national debt has or will have a direct negative impact on their personal financial security.

Contrary to existing research and conventional wisdom showing that American workers continue to unrealistically plan on Social Security to fund the significant portion of their retirement income, the newest Principal Financial Well-Being Index reveals that Americans are indeed listening to the public debate over Social Security and they appear to "get it" when it comes to Social Security's true place in their retirement security picture. This latest installment of the Well-Being Index, released twice annually by the Principal Financial Group, polls employees at growing businesses (firms with 10-1,000 employees). (Related article: Americans ready for a working retirement)

According to industry expert Larry Zimpleman, president of Retirement & Investor Services at the Principal Financial Group, much of the former research on this subject reports that most Americans believe Social Security will replace all or most of the income they need to live in retirement, while new data from The Principal Financial Well-Being Index paints a picture of a more knowledgeable set of American workers today. The vast majority of respondents (77%) said they expect Social Security to provide about 50 percent or less of their income replacement in retirement, which Zimpleman validates as being on target. At the same time the public debate continues to rage over Social Security, the Index reveals growing satisfaction by workers for their employer-sponsored benefits, particularly health insurance and retirement plans, than in past quarters -- showing a possible connection between Americans' growing concern over the future of Social Security and their own long-term financial futures. (Related article: Retirement planning tips for under-30 Americans)

"These findings are a healthy sign that the message is finally getting through to American workers that Social Security was never meant to be the sole source of retirement funding, rather a supplement to personal savings and employer-sponsored benefits," Zimpleman said. "At the same time, the Index provides evidence of Americans' growing satisfaction with their employee benefits while they are increasingly concerned about the long term amid rising benefit costs, especially health insurance. When you put the whole puzzle together, it looks like this: employers are clamping down on growing benefit costs; workers are getting the message that these benefits are extremely important to their future, yet not an entitlement; and growing concern about the future is causing Americans to pay more attention to these issues as a whole."

Does it mean that Americans are smarter than their own president?

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