Hillary Offers 401(k)s for All

Feds would match up to $1,000 for middle income Americans

By Nick McMaster, Newser Staff

Posted Oct 9, 2007 6:10 PM CDT

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Hillary Offers 401(k)s for All — Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., speaks during a town hall meeting, Tuesday, Oct. 9, 2007, in Webster City, Iowa. Under a plan Clinton outlined Tuesday every citizen could get a 401(k) retirement account and up to $1,000 in annual matching funds from the government.... (Associated Press)

Today Hillary unveiled a new plan, vowing to help Americans retire by matching $1,000 of their savings with federal funds. She says feds can match 50-100% of the first $1,000 saved in a 401(k)-style account, depending on one's income. She plans to pay the $20-$25 billion tab by freezing the estate tax, but the New York Times warns that today's lawmakers would nix such a move.

Hillary compared the plan, dubbed "American Retirement Accounts," to her health policy because both are by choice: Americans can keep private plans if they prefer. But she will press bosses to help workers by directly depositing income into their accounts. “Saving in the accounts will be easy — it should not require a Ph.D. to save for retirement,” she said. (More Clinton 2008 stories.)

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