{"id":1051753,"date":"2025-02-27T18:09:38","date_gmt":"2025-02-27T23:09:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/?p=1051753"},"modified":"2025-02-27T18:09:38","modified_gmt":"2025-02-27T23:09:38","slug":"trump-plans-to-gut-social-security-administration-and-risk-hard-earned-benefits-for-millions-of-americans","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/trump-plans-to-gut-social-security-administration-and-risk-hard-earned-benefits-for-millions-of-americans\/","title":{"rendered":"Trump Plans to Gut Social Security Administration and Risk Hard-Earned Benefits for Millions of Americans\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In response to Donald Trump\u2019s plans to gut the Social Security Administration, <\/em>DNC Chair Ken Martin released the following statement:<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cDonald Trump told America that he wouldn’t touch Social Security. He lied. By mass firing the Social Security workforce and shuttering critical field offices \u2014 where more than 100,000 Americans visit in person each workday \u2014 Trump and his shadow president Elon Musk are dismantling Social Security brick by brick. Every person in this country should be alarmed right now. America\u2019s grandparents depend on Social Security \u2014 and they deserve better than Donald Trump.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

NEW: Donald Trump and shadow president Elon Musk have moved to gut the Social Security Administration, threatening hard-earned benefits for millions of Americans amid a 50-year low on staffing.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Washington Post<\/a>: \u201cSocial Security Administration leadership is under instruction to swiftly produce plans to cut its staff by half, <\/strong>according to two employees at the agency who spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

NextGov<\/a>: \u201cMost of the Social Security Administration\u2019s regional commissioners have decided to retire at the end of this week, following mysterious meetings with agency leaders about plans to slash its workforce.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAt least five of the eight regional commissioners whose offices oversee and support the agency\u2019s frontline offices across the country are leaving, <\/strong>according to a source familiar with the agency and an SSA employee not authorized to speak on the record. \u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTheir departures come amid rumors of impending staff cuts at SSA, where the workforce is already at a 50-year low and has toiled amid a customer service crisis born of lack of funding.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Prospect<\/a>: \u201cThe decision could target one of the government\u2019s most prominent public-facing initiatives: SSA field offices, where seniors, people with disabilities, and survivors whose parents have died can sign up for benefits and get information.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

REMINDER: Trump laid out his extreme Project 2025 agenda for his second term, sharing his \u201cconcepts of a plan\u201d to put Social Security at risk and raise costs for hardworking Americans. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kristen Welker<\/a>: \u201cYou’ve tapped Elon Musk, Vivek Ramaswamy, to head up this department of government efficiency-\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trump: \u201cCorrect.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Welker: \u201c-which proposes cuts to the federal government. I think a lot of people hear that and get concerned about Medicare and Social Security.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trump: \u201cNot going to have anything to do\u2013\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Welker: \u201c-and defense spending. You won’t touch Medicare, Social Security\u2013\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trump: \u201cWe are talking about- we are talking about theft, abuse, fraud. <\/strong>I said, no, we’re not talking Social Security, other than we might make it more efficient,<\/strong> but the people will get what they get.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trump has a record of trying to gut Social Security every year during his first term in office and is pledging cuts in a second term. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Washington Post<\/a>: \u201cTrump proposals could drain Social Security in 6 years, budget group says\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Washington Post<\/a>: \u201cHis avowed stance, however, is at odds with Trump\u2019s own record as president: Each of his White House budget proposals included cuts to Social Security and Medicare programs.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vox<\/a>: \u201cTrump said he wouldn\u2019t cut Medicaid, Social Security, and Medicare. His 2020 budget cuts all 3.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

National Review<\/a>: \u201cSpeaking with CNBC at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Trump was asked whether he would cut entitlements at some point. \u2018Will entitlements ever be on your plate?\u2019 asked interviewer Joe Kernen. \u2018At some point they will be,\u2019 Trump responded. \u2018At the right time, we will take a look at that. You know, that\u2019s the easiest of all things [to cut].\u2019\u201d<\/strong>
Mediaite<\/a>: \u201cDuring a Fox News town hall, President Donald Trump promised to cut entitlements like Medicare and Social Security if he were to win a second term<\/strong>. \u2026 \u2018But if you don\u2019t cut something in entitlements, you will never really deal with the debt,\u2019 town hall co-moderator Martha MacCallum interjected, alluding to social safety programs like Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security. \u2018Oh, we\u2019ll be cutting,\u2019 Trump rushed to confirm<\/strong>.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In response to Donald Trump\u2019s plans to gut the Social Security Administration, DNC Chair Ken Martin released the following statement: \u201cDonald Trump told America that he wouldn’t touch Social Security. He lied. By mass firing the Social Security workforce and shuttering critical field offices \u2014 where more than 100,000 Americans visit in person each workday […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":292,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1051753","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-press-release"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nTrump Plans to Gut Social Security Administration and Risk Hard-Earned Benefits for Millions of Americans\u00a0 - Democrats<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/trump-plans-to-gut-social-security-administration-and-risk-hard-earned-benefits-for-millions-of-americans\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Democrats\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-02-27T23:09:38+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Black-Logo-White-Fill-For-Email.png?w=1024\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Adrianna Tomasello\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Adrianna Tomasello\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/trump-plans-to-gut-social-security-administration-and-risk-hard-earned-benefits-for-millions-of-americans\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/democrats.org\/news\/trump-plans-to-gut-social-security-administration-and-risk-hard-earned-benefits-for-millions-of-americans\/\",\"name\":\"Trump Plans to Gut Social Security Administration and Risk Hard-Earned Benefits for Millions of Americans\u00a0 - 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