EDITORIAL: Finally inching forward on the entitlement dilemma

Members of Congress for years have metaphorically run for the hills when confronted with the nation’s looming entitlement crisis, opting for inertia over reforms that might be politically risky. But with the Social Security trust fund now set to run dry in just six years — and Medicare not far behind — further inaction will soon be an untenable option. To that end, eight senators — Democrats Dick Durbin (Illinois), Tim Kaine (Virginia) and Chris Coons (Delaware), and Republicans Bill Cassidy (Louisiana) Thom Tillis (North Carolina), Alan Armstrong (Oklahoma) and John Cornyn (Texas) with independent Angus King (Maine) — now propose the Promise Act. It is intended to create a mechanism to force Congress to do its job regarding Social Security. The proposal directs the Social Security Advisor