As reported in Vox, one of the opening battles of the Republican presidential primary—cuts to Social Security. And even though former President Donald Trump says he won’t cut Americans’ Social Security and Medicare benefits many point to promise as an absurd proposition—why, because he’s made similar promises in the past, and they were lies.
In Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign he repeatedly pledged that he wouldn’t cut Social Security, Medicare or Medicaid but after he entered office, his pledge all but evaporated.
Each one of Trump’s White House budget proposals included cuts to Medicare and Social Security.
The health care legislation he worked on with Republicans entailed big cuts to Medicaid and toward the end of his term, Trump said he’d consider making cuts to Medicare if he were re-elected as a way to cut the federal deficit, which had increased during his presidency.
He didn’t succeed in these efforts, but many retirees now claim that Trump didn’t care about the issue except as a campaign promise.
Trump knows where to place his political chips through his promises but some say it’s a trap—that fewer Americans will fall for now.
Last summer, the familiar GOP refrain was repeated again and again—holding mostly senior Americans hostage once again by introducing the GOP “balanced budget” that included making cuts to the most popular American safety net—Social Security and Medicare.
If the GOP has their way (and Trump would likely fall in line with them as he has proven in the past) many seniors could see a major reduction in lifetime benefits if the GOP plan is put into action through law.
House GOP conservatives introduced the first of the proposals on June 14. One of the features of the Republican proposal is to raise the full retirement age (FRA) at which seniors are entitled to full benefits they are due.
The proposal was unveiled by U.S. GOP House conservatives, Bloomberg reported. One of its main features is to raise the full retirement age (FRA) at which seniors are entitled to the full benefits they are due.
Democrats on the other hand proposed numerous protections to Social Security through higher payroll taxes or reductions to benefits for the most wealthy Americans—but the GOP continues to focus on reducing benefits or even privatizing the program.
Reported by GOBankingRates, the then Speaker said this was just the beginning, “House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) told Fox News, that this was only the “first step” in a broader Republican agenda that includes further cuts.
“This isn’t the end,” McCarthy said. “This doesn’t solve all the problems. We only got to look at 11% of the budget to find these cuts. We have to look at the entire budget. … The majority driver of the budget is mandatory spending. It’s Medicare, Social Security, interest on the debt.”
It’s no surprise that Republicans have been targeting cuts to Social Security and Medicare, the nation’s oldest program and promise to working Americans that their payroll investments and their healthcare would be for them as they age.
And this is the whisper refrain again in the Republican House.
And in an election year, even though Republicans are careful to avoid the Social Security question—retirees fear that, like Trump, once elected, the cuts to Social Security and Medicare will go immediately back on the table and with a possible majority, could succeed.
Over the summer, House Republicans were demanding debt ceiling proposals that would essentially cut almost every federal agency.
In one report, the Republicans spending cap would “freeze” spending at FY 2022 levels or, roughly 4.5 trillion.
According to reports, the Social Security Administration needs more funding, not less, and with the proposed cuts by the GOP over the summer, this would mean that SSA would not be able to effectively administer help for a decades long promise to working Americans—the most vulnerable, U.S. seniors.
Without SS funding, claimants will suffer.
Still, Republicans want to cut at least 23% from this vital program. According to the Washington Post report in 2017, 10,000 SSDI claimants died awaiting a chance to plead their disability cases. Covid has only increased those with claims for assistance.
Reportedly, the Social Security Administration is one of the most fiscally responsible federal agencies and one that has managed to keep its administrative costs below 1%.
Senior groups across the nation are rallying House Republicans to stop using the debt limit and holding Social Security “hostage.”
In Arizona, seniors are worried.
Tura Shope, a 70-year-old retired America West communications employee who lives near downtown Phoenix told Northeast Valley News, “Social Security is my money! I worked for it. Social Security and Medicare are non-negotiable. Anyone who uses them as leverage needs to be removed from office.”
Several retirees in the West Valley told Northeast Valley News that Social Security is their number one reliable income stream.
“Trump said he wouldn’t make cuts before—but he proposed large cuts to Social Security and Medicare while in office,” said Sheldon Kaplan a 72-year old retired machinist.
Native Arizonan, Chris Butler is working part-time packaging groceries at a supermarket close to her home. Butler lives alone and says that Social Security pays the bulk of her bills but the part-time is also necessary.
“Social Security keeps a roof over my head—without it, I would be living on the street,” Butler said.
