Social Security in Peril? White House Claims GOP Will Cut Funding — What Are They Referring To?
With the 2022 midterm elections less than two weeks away and most polls showing that Republicans are heavily favored to win back control of the U.S. House, the Biden administration has shifted its focus to Social Security and Medicare — specifically, how a GOP-controlled House might gut the two programs.
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In an Oct. 25 tweet, the White House said:
“The vast majority of House Republicans have signed on to a Republican budget that will cut Social Security and Medicare.”
The vast majority of House Republicans have signed on to a Republican budget that will cut Social Security and Medicare.
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) October 25, 2022
The tweet referred to proposed changes by the House’s Republican Study Committee that would result in lower benefits for certain future Social Security recipients, Bloomberg reported. Some leading Republicans also told Bloomberg they are considering leveraging the need to raise the U.S. debt ceiling next year to demand changes to Medicare and Social Security solvency.
A day after the tweet, the White House issued a release on its website — titled “Congressional Republicans’ Five-Part Plan to Increase Inflation and Costs for American Families” — that details how Social Security and Medicare might be imperiled. Among its points:
The Republican Study Committee, which represents a majority of House Republicans, has proposed a plan to cut Medicare and Social Security benefits, including through privatization and raising the eligibility age.
Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) has called for putting Medicare and Social Security on the chopping block every five years.
Sen. Ron Johnson (R.-Wis.) has said Medicare and Social Security should be put up for a vote every single year.
Repealing the Inflation Reduction Act prescription drug provisions would increase prescription drug prices by eliminating the requirement that drug companies pay rebates to Medicare when they raise prices faster than inflation and eliminate the IRA’s $2,000 cap on drug costs at the pharmacy.
Separately, President Joe Biden told a meeting of Democratic National Committee members that Democrats are going to “protect” Social Security and Medicare.
“Republicans have been very clear: They’ve stated boldly that they want to cut Social Security and Medicare and — to the point that they’ll shut down the government, they say, and send the nation into default, which raises prices for everyone, if we do not cut Social Security and Medicare,” Biden said. “I ain’t gonna do it.”
The focus on Social Security and Medicare benefits this late in the midterm race is hardly surprising, especially with Biden facing the prospect of a Republican Congress. For their part, Republican Congressional leaders have waved off White House claims that Social Security is in danger.
As Bloomberg noted, U.S. Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.), the second-highest ranking House Republican, has defended his party’s approach to Medicare and Social Security
“It’s a mischaracterization to say the GOP plans to ‘cut’ the programs,” Scalise said on “Fox News Sunday.” “That is not something we have proposed. We have proposed strengthening and shoring up Medicare and Social Security.”
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Scalise also noted that under current law, the Social Security trust fund will become insolvent in 2035 and the trust fund of Medicare faces insolvency in 2028. In an email to Bloomberg, Scalise’s office said he has not specifically signed on to the Republican Study Committee plan. Instead, his office referred to the GOP’s Commitment to America, which says the party plans to “save and strengthen Social Security and Medicare.”
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