SOCIAL SECURITY IS one of the most successful government programs in the history of the country. With great efficiency, it provides an invaluable measure of financial security for millions of Americans, and has for generations. The hardworking people of Nevada have earned the Social Security they've worked for all their lives, and I will work tirelessly to make sure they get it.

A growing number of people today are concerned about retirement security. While apprehension about the future is not necessarily new, rising healthcare prices and efforts in Washington to privatize Social Security do provide some reasons for concern.

Nevada's seniors deserve better. Preserving Social Security, protecting pensions, and fixing the flawed and confusing Medicare prescription drug program are all top priorities. By addressing these issues, we'll help ensure Southern Nevada seniors have a dignified retirement.

I know the challenges working Nevadans face because my family faced them too. When I was growing up, my father was a hard-rock miner in Searchlight, and my mother took in wash. The thought of them saving any money was unrealistic; they needed every dollar just to survive. When my father died, my mother, fortunately, had social security—but not much else.

And as more and more baby boomers come to Southern Nevada to retire, preserving that hard-earned time of rest and relaxation is becoming even more important. Current and future retirees deserve the peace of mind that comes with knowing their Social Security will be there when they need it. I am working on behalf of Nevada to move America in a new direction. My Retirement Security plan will strengthen the middle class, lower health care costs, protect Social Security from privatization, and keep Medicare strong.

To that end, I recently joined my fellow members of Congress in launching the "Golden Promise" campaign, to pledge my continued support of Social Security health, and to oppose privatization.

As a native of the Silver State, Nevada always comes first for me and everything I do in Washington is done with the needs of working Nevadans in mind. I promise to continue fighting for a new direction that brings retirement security and retirement dignity to all Nevadans.