Social Security Champions Endorse Kirkpatrick While Privatizers Honor Gosar
FLAGSTAFF, AZ – Two of the country’s most prominent groups dedicated to protecting seniors are making the choice in this race even clearer by endorsing Ann Kirkpatrick. Ann announced today that both the Alliance for Retired Americans and the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare are supporting her over Paul Gosar, who recently won an award from the Wall Street special interests that are working to end Social Security as we know it.
Ann is a champion for Greater Arizona’s seniors and is continuing her fight to protect the benefits they’ve worked their whole lives to earn. Paul Gosar (R-Wall Street) has gone so far as to question the constitutionality of Social Security and Medicare [New York Times, 10/15], has proposed $73 billion in cuts to Social Security benefits [
link] and earned the backing of several corporate special interest groups committed to privatizing Social Security [
link].
“With Paul Gosar trying to cover up his views, there’s so much misinformation out there,”
said Prescott senior Jane Ryan. “But we know there is a clear choice for retirees. These groups are standing with Ann Kirkpatrick because we can count on her to fight the privatizers that are supporting her opponent.”
“I won’t vote for someone who will let Washington break its promises to seniors,”
said Ethan Davis, another District One senior. “Social Security and Medicare are so important to my friends, neighbors and me, and we need to preserve them for us and our grandkids. Ann Kirkpatrick has proven that she is on our side and not the Wall Street bankers. I don’t trust Paul Gosar to stand up to the folks that are trying to buy this election for him.”
While Ann wins the endorsement of groups dedicated to protecting Social Security and Medicare, Paul Gosar has won the support of a broad swath of groups dedicated to privatizing Social Security [
link]. Just this week, he proudly trumpeted the shiny new “Guardian of Seniors’ Rights” Award [Gosar e-mail, 10/21] he won from the 60 Plus Association, a group dedicated to privatizing Social Security [
link] that is spending $361,649 to attack Ann. This shadowy organization knows Paul Gosar will answer to them, not to Greater Arizona’s seniors.
“The support of these champions of Social Security and Medicare is humbling. I am proud to be recognized for my dedication to serving Arizona’s seniors,” said Ann Kirkpatrick. “We need to be protecting and improving Social Security, and we can’t let the special interests that want to dismantle it win. I will fight my opponent and his Wall Street allies every step of the way.”
Ann has previously earned overwhelming support from Arizona’s tribal [
link] and law enforcement communities [
link], the backing of the Veterans of Foreign Wars PAC [
link] and the Veterans’ Vision, the endorsement of the Arizona Republic [
link], a perfect A+ score from the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America [
link] and an A rating from the NRA.
BACKGROUNDAnn Kirkpatrick has been a champion for seniors in Washington and has opposed any and all privatization schemes that would put seniors’ retirement security at risk. She has previously secured a $250 payment to help folks on Social Security keep pace with the rising cost of basic needs without a cost-of-living adjustment in 2024, and she’s working to do the same this year [
link]. She is also pushing to find ways to change how Social Security cost-of-living adjustments are calculated so that they better account for the costs seniors face in their day-to-day lives during this economic downturn.
