Rico says he will take it, thank you

According to The Washington Post, the Social Security Administration is planning to announce today that there will be no cost-of-living increase next year for the first time since 1975, when such adjustments became automatic. Why? Inflation has been negative this year. As a result, Obama wants Congress to award around 57 million seniors, people with disabilities, and veterans a one-time $250 check to help some of the most vulnerable Americans deal with the recession. The check would amount to around two percent of the annual benefit for the average retiree receiving Social Security benefits, and would also go to Supplemental Security Income beneficiaries, veterans, and government and railroad retirees. The plan is expected to cost about $13 billion, and critics are bound to say it's merely a component of a second stimulus plan that the administration wants to pass without calling it that. Indeed, supporters of the idea openly talked about how the $250 payments would help not only Social Security recipients but also the economy as a whole.