"Minnesotans United to Protect Social Security" will hold a rally Friday at the state Capitol to call on lawmakers to protect the federal program from privatization and massive benefit cuts.

The rally will start at 9:30 a.m. in the rotunda of the Capitol.

The event coincides with a visit by President George Bush to Minnesota Friday to tout his proposal to "reform" Social Security by creating private accounts.

Minnesotans United to Protect Social Security and other opponents say the Bush proposal is too costly, would result in benefit cuts and undermine the entire Social Security program. Social Security, created in the 1930s during President Franklin D. Roosevelt's administration, provides an economic safety net for retirees, disabled workers and children whose parents die.

Social Security is widely viewed as the most successful anti-poverty program in U.S. history.