Elizabeth Warren Decries Trump Administration Taking 'Chainsaw' To Social Security

Forbes Breaking News

During remarks on the Senate floor Monday, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) spoke about the Trump administration's attacks on the Social Security Administration.

Transcript

00:00So, Donald Trump and Elon Musk are taking a chainsaw to Social Security.

00:19For nearly a century, Social Security has been there for tens of millions of Americans.

00:24But now, Trump and Musk are threatening to tear all of that down.

00:29They are firing staff.

00:31They're plotting to close down offices.

00:34They're making it harder for people to get help over the telephone.

00:39Trump's pick to head up Social Security, Frank Bisognano, will rubber stamp Trump and Musk's

00:47attack on Social Security.

00:50He'll let them keep slashing services.

00:52He'll let them keep threatening benefits.

00:54And that's going to hurt people everywhere.

00:57From seniors who count on their monthly checks right now to the parents of kids with a disability

01:03supported by Social Security to every American who is paying into the program now for results

01:11later on down the line.

01:14Social Security, by the way, is more than just a retirement program.

01:18It is insurance.

01:20If you are 30 years old today and you get in an accident and become disabled, Social Security

01:26has you covered.

01:27If you have a child and something happens to you, that kid will get Social Security benefits.

01:34Donald Trump and Elon Musk want to rip that protection away.

01:38Two people who don't have the slightest clue how much Social Security means to families are

01:46now threatening Americans' benefits in order to pay for giant tax cuts for billionaires.

01:53And since those two cannot begin to imagine what it means for working people, let's tell

02:00them what Social Security does.

02:02A few weeks ago, I posted a video explaining what Trump and Musk were doing to Social Security.

02:09And I asked people, just tell your stories.

02:12And the stories came flooding in.

02:14And here are just a few.

02:16Quote, I'm on Social Security disability.

02:20It's about 95 percent of my total income.

02:24Every month since Trump took office this year, I have worried about whether or not my Social

02:30Security payment will come as usual.

02:33Yeah.

02:34Millions of people out there who are worried about getting their Social Security payments

02:39on time because Trump and Musk are out there with that famous chainsaw doing what they can

02:45to make it harder for people to get the benefits that they have earned.

02:50Or here's another.

02:52I've had Medicare medication coverage for around 20 years.

02:57And all of a sudden, with Musk's appearance, I've had to fight to keep it.

03:03Here's someone who has a legal right, a benefit, and now, thanks to Elon Musk, has to be in

03:11the fight in order to keep what this person is entitled to.

03:16Or another.

03:18I've been getting my Social Security check with zero problems for 15 years.

03:23Last night, I was so worried about me not getting a check that I stayed up to the early morning

03:29hours to make sure it was in my account.

03:33Thanks to Trump and Musk, I worry if I will be able to pay my rent every month.

03:39Since Trump has been in office, it's been extremely stressful.

03:44Now, that's the stress people are feeling about whether or not they will have access to the

03:50money that they invested year after year when they were working, the money that they earned

03:57their Social Security benefits.

03:59Or another.

04:00We have a son born with Down syndrome, and we are now retired, depending on our Social Security

04:07for the three of us, for food, utilities, clothing, medical services, things that we

04:13worked for all our lives, only to have billionaires come in and take what little we have to live

04:21on away.

04:22Yeah.

04:23The billionaires may not care about Social Security, but here's someone who depends on it

04:29every day.

04:30Or another.

04:32I'm about to turn 65 and have had a nightmare of a time trying to even talk to a real human

04:40being at the Social Security office.

04:42It's been just a series of dead ends and mistakes piled atop confusion.

04:49And boy, there's the heart of it.

04:51Donald Trump and Elon Musk can't legally cut Social Security benefits, but what Trump and Musk

04:58are now doing is cutting access to being able to get your Social Security benefits started,

05:03which has a very similar effect for people who don't get what they earned all their lives.

05:11Or here's another.

05:12I had cancer at 52 years old, stage 4 uterine cancer.

05:17I spent more than a year fighting cancer.

05:21I am currently 66 years old and fighting the chronic pain from the chemicals they use to treat

05:27the cancer.

05:28I rely on my Social Security to survive.

05:32What am I going to do?

05:35This is what's happening in America now, because Donald Trump and Elon Musk are taking a chainsaw

05:41to Social Security.

05:43Or another.

05:44I'm 71 years old and work part-time as a data technician in dementia research, so my Social

05:51Security benefits supplement my income.

05:54I'm anxious that eventually I, too, will have my Social Security check delayed or stopped

06:01altogether.

06:03Or another.

06:05We all need Social Security to survive as a nation.

06:08I myself have been having it drawn out of my paychecks for over 40 years, but haven't

06:15retired yet and will need it shortly.

06:18My only hope is that it's still there when I need it.

06:21We earn that right to collect this money and will not let a bunch of billionaires take it

06:27from us.

06:28Amen.

06:30I have worked since I was 16 years old, and now I am 71, but I still work part-time.

06:36It goes without saying that I need my Social Security benefits to survive.

06:42And since Trump and Musk took over, I don't know from one month to the next what might happen.

06:48Again, so scary now.

06:50This is what Donald Trump and Elon Musk are doing to people who are counting on Social

06:55Security.

06:56Or another.

06:58I only get $25,000 yearly from Social Security, and it constitutes more than half my income.

07:05I have a small pension from the company where I worked for 40 years.

07:08If I lose my Social Security, I'll have to support myself and my sister who cannot work.

07:16I don't have much in savings due to continuing medical expenses over the years.

07:20We need my Social Security to survive.

07:24I'll say that again.

07:25We need my Social Security to survive.

07:29Or another.

07:30I'm a Social Security employee, and I just want to say thank you for standing up for the

07:36programs SSA runs and the beneficiaries.

07:41It is true it's been becoming harder for people to access their benefits, but also for other

07:48services, such as getting their Social Security card replaced.

07:52There are some days where people are waiting for eight hours just to talk to a customer service

08:01representative, or they don't even get the call back and have to call again the next day

08:07to have an issue resolved.

08:09That's if they have the time to call the next day.

08:13That is testimony from the front lines from someone who works at the Social Security Administration,

08:20lines that are eight hours long.

08:24Or another.

08:25I went to a Social Security office yesterday because I needed to change my direct deposit

08:30for my monthly benefits.

08:33The doors were locked.

08:34All the booths were shuttered.

08:36Sign on the door said, quote, by appointment only.

08:40And there was a number to call, which I did.

08:43The automated system put me on hold.

08:46And the recording said 15-minute wait.

08:49And after time passed, the recording said I would be helped as soon as possible.

08:54Then said they were receiving higher than normal call volumes.

08:59After several rings, the recording said, leave a message, which I did, and someone will return

09:05your call.

09:06But that hasn't happened yet.

09:08As I sat outside that office, another person walked up and said he heard that we have to

09:14go into the office in person to show our ID or lose our benefits.

09:20Then realized the door was locked.

09:22Now I am very concerned that I might not get my benefits in the future.

09:28So, Donald Trump and Elon Musk, that is what your attack on Social Security means for Americans.

09:34More problems and fewer people to fix them.

09:38Hours on the phone or hours waiting in line in an office trying to get help.

09:42All to get the benefits that people have paid into their entire working lives.

09:50That is money they have earned and money they are owed.

09:54Frank Bissignato has made clear he will not stop the chaos.

10:00He will not stop the harm.

10:02That is wrong.

10:03And on behalf of every single American who counts on Social Security, I am voting no on

10:09this appointment.

10:10And I encourage all of my colleagues, Democrat and Republican, to do the same.

10:16And I encourage all of my colleagues, Democrat and Republican, to do the same thing as well.

Category

Transcript

Recommended