As he celebrated the 50th anniversary of Social Security, then–Speaker of the House Tip O'Neill (D–Mass.) hailed the program's epic accomplishments.
In the days before Social Security was born, O'Neill said, "Life for the elderly is filled with uncertainty, dependency, and horror. When you get old, you are without income, without hope." The federal government's payments to retirees, he continued, meant that Americans no longer had to live in "fear and dependency" in old age.
