U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., hosted a forum on Social Security in St. Cloud Tuesday and it drew a packed house.

But the St. Cloud Times says Bachmann showed up an hour late for the forum, “What Every Woman Should Know About Social Security,” and then stayed only 10 minutes.

So those attending at the St. Cloud Library instead heard lots from Christina Powell, an official with the Social Security Administration.

Bachmann has said she'd like to replace the current Social Security system with private accounts for future generations, but that wasn't addressed in the meeting, the paper said. Here's an excerpt from the newspaper's report:

Instead, most of the forum consisted of Powell explaining fundamental questions of how Social Security operates today to the audience, members of which asked her frequent questions.

Many wanted to know details of how Social Security payments are calculated, what happens to those benefits when a spouse dies or becomes divorced, when full benefits can be received and what qualifications are needed for Social Security disability payments, among other items.

“We at Social Security work very hard to make sure that everyone who’s eligible for a benefit receives that benefit,” Powell told the audience.

Powell highlighted the news this week that Social Security benefits are not likely to receive a cost of living adjustment for the next two years, and that many people’s checks could become smaller because of the rising cost of Medicare prescription drug programs that take their money out of Social Security first.