Yahoo Finance Trump blasts the Democrats’ management of Social Security — but Biden says there will be no cuts on his watch
Whoever wins the Oval Office in November 2024 is going to inherit a mountain of national debt, which is currently at $34.5 trillion and counting.
One potential remedy for this debt problem — raised time and time again, mainly by Republican lawmakers — would be to cut spending on entitlement programs like Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, Unemployment Insurance and other welfare programs.
While President Joe Biden has insisted he will not cut funding for entitlements, it seems like his main political rival Donald Trump is wavering on the issue.
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In an interview on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” on March 11, the former U.S. president was asked by host Joe Kernen if he had changed his “outlook on how to handle entitlements” like Social Security.
Trump responded by saying there’s a “tremendous… number of things” that could be done to entitlements “in terms of cutting and [also] in terms of the theft and the bad management of entitlements, tremendous bad management of entitlements.”
‘Weakening’ Social Security
When the “Squawk Box” host suggested “there’s not a whole lot of difference between” Trump and Biden’s plans for entitlements, the Republican front-runner said: “I don’t necessarily agree with the statement.”
Since he’s not currently in office, all the former president could do was point fingers at the Biden administration’s current efforts: “I know that they’re going to end up weakening Social Security because the country is weak.”
To back that claim, Trump highlighted how sky-high inflation has eaten away at the American people’s purchasing power.
“People are going through hell,” he said. “The middle class in our country has been routed. The middle class largely built our country and they have been treated very, very badly with policy.”
After Trump hinted he would make changes to the nation’s entitlement policies, President Biden immediately clapped back on X, formerly known as Twitter, with a four-word warning: “Not on my watch.”
This echoes comments the president made in his State of the Union speech last Thursday: “Many of my Republican friends want to put Social Security on the chopping block. If anyone here tries to cut Social Security or Medicare or raise the retirement age I will stop them.”
“Working people who built this country pay more into Social Security than millionaires and billionaires do. It’s not fair. Republicans will cut Social Security and give more tax cuts to the wealthy… I will protect and strengthen Social Security and make the wealthy pay their fair share.”
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The cost of entitlements
Social Security currently accounts for 22% of government spending, according to U.S. Treasury data. It is the largest category of federal spending, along with health care — and it is drawing a lot of critical eyeballs amid the nation’s $34 trillion debt crisis.
Deficits in the program are projected to increase as more baby boomers retire and swell the ranks for Social Security recipients. The number of Americans in that age and retirement bracket is projected to grow from about 58 million in 2022 to about 75 million by 2035.
As of January 2024, there were almost 67.2 million Social Security claimants, receiving an average monthly benefit of $1,770, according to SSA data. That equates to average annual assistance of $21,240 per claimant.
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This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.
