Summary
At the first meeting of the DOGE Caucus, a new congressional group focused on government efficiency, Republican Rep. Greg Lopez stated that cuts to Social Security and Medicare are likely “on the table” as part of debt reduction efforts.
The caucus, led by Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, aims to slash government spending, raising concerns among advocacy groups about potential attacks on anti-poverty programs.
Critics, including Social Security Works, warn the caucus may push for privatization and benefit reductions.
This comes despite Trump’s prior commitment to protect these programs.
Yes, they want to roll back the entire New Deal and have corporate serfdom again. They have been saying it for years and now they have their chance.
Hahahahahahahaahahhaahahaaaaaaaahhahahahaa
Lovely how this incredibly wealthy person is laser focused on making things worse for poor people. I suppose it’s the usual ploy of making people as desperate as possible so people like him can prey on us more easily.
Friendly reminder that Social Security is a separate government program that funds itself.
What Musk is talking about is stealing from Social Security in order to cut taxes elsewhere (namely cutting taxes for people like Musk).
That’s not completely true. Social Security is supposed to fund itself, however it’s currently facing a funding shortfall with current estimates that it will be depleted in 2035. There are many suggestions on how make this program solvent, including bolstering it with general funds.
I think a good start would be to stop allowing Republicans to raid Social Security for quick cash, like they’ve been constantly doing since the Reagan administration.
But then how could they argue it’s insolvent‽
That’s not completely true. Long ago they put it into the general fund. There is always a shortfall in the general fund. Before they put it in there it was solvent, and if they wouldn’t have it would be completely solvent today.
It was already stolen. They want the rest.
How does it fund itself? What’s the income? Just Social Security Tax?
Yes, it’s a payroll tax. Your paycheck may show how much you are paying into Social Security. This is money meant to help you and others after retirement. Musk wants to take that money and instead use it to fill unrelated gaps in the federal budget, gaps caused by Trump’s tax cuts for the very wealthy.
Social Security fund invested in government bonds, so the interest from that goes into the fund.
To be fair the budget deficit was there before Trump. His campaign promises are going to increase it, but they can offset that partially with spending cuts. Also, the government has been using money from the Social Security fund routinely, again nothing new under Trump. They just count it as an internal debt. According to Wikipedia, by 2022 it’s been already about 20% of the fund “borrowed” by the government.
Holy shit I never realized it until you explained it like this. Thank you, and also we are fucked.
This is one of the rare cases where I want to laugh at the silly US, but can’t because our “scial security” (we call it “retirement savings”) is being missapropriated for general funds as well :(
I just this year set up regular investment (part of my paycheck) into various funds to save for retirement privately.
Wow! Who woulda guessed they would immediately reneg on a campaign “promise” and immediately attack the side of the population that most reliably votes for them?
And they still will!
At least until the next pandemic
“But they won’t take away MY social security…”
For most boomers, this is true. It’s genx and younger that will suffer.
Disabled people will be first to be killed by this. It is already a Herculean task to be approved for SSDI and takes years for many despite clearly documented and proven disabilities. And it does not pay out enough for most recipients. That will only get worse if SSA is targeted. I am not legally allowed to state my opinion on this.
Interestingly enough, social security’s disability trust fund has enough money to continue paying out until 2098; it’s the old person part that’s running out.
> some cuts
> the cuts:
doesn’t need to be, of course. they just want to cut social security because ‘the poors’ rely on it more.
debt reduction efforts
deep-six every loophole used mostly or only by the wealthy to avoid paying their share of taxes.
increase funding for irs, streamline enforcement actions, give them the resources needed to go after the big fish.
eliminate the cap on social security contributions, lower the ceiling on benefits for the very wealthy retirees, while raising the minimum benefit.
single payer tax funded health care, paid by higher taxes on the wealthy.
raise the capital gains rates. raise the estate tax, lower the assets value needed to trigger it.
raise the marginal rates for high income earners (by a lot. i want reagan screaming from beyond)
budget problem fixed. well over $2 trillion a year pumped into the economy by people who are now no longer padding insurance companies’ bottom lines with it. but we aren’t done yet…
$12/hr min wage (wait wut!!! wait for it…)
$24,000 universal tax credit for everyone. the higher taxes up^there on high income earners would negate this for them, and they fund it for the others that do receive it.
this is a compromise between the $15 (or higher) crowd and small businesses. a little lower fed min wage than what’s being pushed, but then essentially doubled based on full time work via the tax credit all receive.
The wealthy, who have had help all their life but imagine they did it all on their own, see needing help when you’re poor as a disgusting moral failing. Many of them will also call themselves Christians.
This could end badly for them. Old people without a means to continue surviving either have to continue working till they die, or die fighting the government.
There’s certain people who continue to receive social security from childhood if they have a qualifying disability and make under a certain amount of money. I think to qualify for social security your primary caregiver has to be on social security, like if you live with a grandparent or you have an older parent.
I’m not even touching on those on SSDI. Just the common retired 67 year old. Just imagine a retired Walmart worker with no SSI income. Way too many of them with nothing else to do other than die; be homeless, suffer and die; or die taking in the government.
So so shocked. But but they said that they would never go after social security.
I don’t know what’s more intriguing- the lies or the fact that his base doesn’t notice it or doesn’t care.
This is going to go down like a lead ballon, even with the 60+ year old MAGAs.
I hate to tell you but it won’t. My in-laws fall into that category and I constantly watch them twist themselves into knots trying to justify this stuff. They would also rather do without insurance than watch someone “undeserving” get it for “free”.
I’m sure they say that now, but I wonder what happens when they actually have to live it.
They will blame immigrants, single mothers, non-whites and LGBTQ+ people, and ignore the facts.
Bring it, bitches. It’s high time we face the consequences of our collective stupidity.
My stance. We voted for this. Let them do it. Get it over with. Let it all burn
OK, but we have to make it absolutely crystal clear who is doing this, who it’s hurting, and who is benefiting. That’s why reporting like this is important.
Trump just won an election by blaming democrats for Trump’s own terrible economy.
People have no idea how the government works and they’re not taught that for a reason. Most people also have very short memories and do not understand that most legislation takes years to take effect. They only remember what they are currently being told and the more times it is repeated the more effective the propaganda.
And those of us who very much did not vote for this but will suffer from it anyway, fuck us too, right?
I didn’t vote for this clown but the country did. Give em what they want. Make it fast
Hopefully they stop all those subsidies that go towards farms and we all starve and die.
who needs crops when we can eat the oligarchs?
