Beyond the perimeters of the convention centre in downtown Omaha where President George W. Bush spoke to afriendly crowd last week, plans for pension reform met doubts, questions and resistance.

"Social Security is a sacred trust in this country and it is being betrayed," said Therese Vaughn, a 37-year-old mother, who was having a late lunch with her family at Goldberg's restaurant, a few miles from where the president spoke on Friday.