Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards is calling for changes in pension systems to address the inequities between top company executives and company workers.Edwards says executives use tricks and gimmicks to give themselves huge pension benefits, while cutting pensions for workers. Edwards says American Airlines provided a recent example of what’s wrong with the current system.Edwards says as American was entering bankruptcy, workers agreed to wage reductions while at the same time the airline’s executives were padding their own pensions. Edwards says corporations have a cavalier attitude about workers’ pensions,and a recent survey found 40 percent of American companies were considering cuts in pension benefits.Edwards wants to take away tax breaks from executives who have pensions that’re dramatically larger than pensions for other company employees. And he’d close a tax loophole that lets execs avoid paying taxes on some of their pension income. Edwards made campaign stops in north central Iowa today. Ohio Congressman Dennis Kucinich campaigned in Cedar Rapids today and promised to cut what he called the “bloated” Pentagon budget and redirect that money to “hometown security” needs like health care and education.
