What is the benefit of hard-working people to defer a payroll tax for the last quarter of this year, only to have to pay it back in the first quarter of next year? It doesn't even sound like a good idea in theory. There are several reasons this hurts our economy more than helps it.

1. It is a deferment, which means it isn't free.

The government does not give away free lunches nor do they give away taxpayer's money that they can use for other programs. It has been the habit of the government to take from the Social Security coffers for decades.

2. No one benefits from this exercise except possibly the president.

However, let's do the math. If you are lucky enough to make $15.00 an hour and work a 40-hour workweek during this pandemic, your weekly earnings are $600.00. Multiply that by 6.2% comes out to $37.20 per week. This is approximately $150.00 a month additional income for the next four months.

3. The Republican party has wanted to defund Social Security for years.

This is a Democratic program that has lasted since the Great Depression and they feel it costs the average businessman and penalizes those for earning too much income to benefit from it. It is a welfare program that each working man and woman contributes.

4. If this program is defunded, imagine what will happen to the men and women of America that were not able to contribute to a 401k or any other retirement program?

Those hard-working Americans that paid into a program expecting to reap the benefits of it only to see it slip through their hands and leave them penniless and will probably need to work well past retirement age. Because in theory once Social Security is defunded retirement will only be for people who have the opportunity to save.

It might sound like a good idea when families are struggling to pay rent, utilities, and even put food on the table. In theory, it gives them a needed boost. However, can these families afford to pay it back just as fast as they earned it? $150.00 less from January through April seems to cause another hardship on families that count on every penny.

Also, the companies are on the hook for this program. Your contribution is matched by your employer to social security. They are now weighing their options. If you quit your job, or are terminated the employer still has to pay back their portion of the deferment. However, has the Treasury Department set up a program that follows the employee from one job to another so they can recoup this deferment. As the president signed an executive order in August and the US Treasury gave notice on September 1st they are now scrambling to decide on whether they should defer or not.

It is in your best interest if you prefer not to defer to contact your human resource or payroll department and let them know you are not willing to defer. If you do the math and find that you need the money now and can afford to repay it in the coming year, by all means, do it.

I think it is a political tactic that is going to do more harm than good. This executive order came from a businessman that lost more money in his businesses than the average gambler in Las Vegas. He is trying very hard to get some of the base voters from 2016 back. It is all about the economy for him, nothing but the economy. He has tunnel vision when it comes to the real issues in America. This teeny-tiny carrot should not give him the boost in popularity or votes.