5mo ago

Official installed by Trump moves to 'demolish' Social Security Administration

www.commondreams.org

Official Installed by Trump Moves to 'Demolish' Social Security Administration | Common Dreams

Summary

Leland Dudek, Trump’s newly appointed Social Security Administration (SSA) chief, has reportedly ordered plans for a 50% workforce cut, potentially closing field offices and delaying benefits.

Critics, including Rep. John Larson and advocacy groups, warn this move will disrupt services for seniors and disabled Americans. Five regional SSA commissioners are resigning in protest.

The cuts align with Elon Musk’s push for AI-driven government efficiency, despite concerns over fraud prevention and accessibility.

Critics argue this is a backdoor benefit cut to fund tax breaks for the wealthy.

63 comments

So if they’re gutting social security, what happens to all the money I paid in?
Are we just going to have an epidemic of elderly people working until they die/collapsing in the street?
- That's not how Social Security works. It's not a retirement fund.
  The people who pay in today fund the soc sec payments to people who are qualified to receive benefits today.
  Are we just going to have an epidemic of elderly people working until they die/collapsing in the street?
  Yes.
  
  Glad I gave them 150k
  
  It kind of is supposed to be that actually. What else would you call a system that you pay into your entire life?
- You get nothing, and yes. Worst of both worlds!
- Don't forget the permanently disabled... like ... most people do.
  sigh
  But uh yeah, you're looking at something like 30 to 60 million elderly and greivously disabled people being evicted and starving to death, if they just wipe it all out.
  I... would like to think that effectively murdering 10% to 20% of your own population would lead to a massive armed rebellion... but I uh, honestly don't know at this point.
  Fun Fact!
  You need a permanent mailing address to apply for SNAP.
  I mean, they're already cuttinf that down too, but yeah, if you've been evicted, if you are homeless?
  You can't even do step one of applying for food benefits.
  
  Homeless people can have their mail sent directly to the post office. No word on what will happen if USPS is purged though.
- They will just pocket it like everything else. And yes they intend us to work to death and be grateful for it.
- If I'm being honest, I don't expect to see a penny of social security. I'm making other arrangements wherever possible
- I'm sure the dead-eyed Paul Ryan types would love that situation. He dreamt of killing such programs since he was quite young.
  And I bet quite a few cons, even if harmed by this, will be happy to open wide and let the likes of fElon and Bronzo take a big dump in their mouth, as long as they thought a liberal would have to smell it. So if they have to work until they die, but they "owned the libs", I bet some of them will still revel in it...
- Take a look at what’s happening in Japan. The old has to work, and sometimes most unpleasant jobs, eg cleaning up Fukushima.
  
  A lot of older people volunteered to work Fukushima to protect the younger generations and I have family that work just to get out and do something and the extra cash isn't bad. That said, there are people who have to work. I think one or two sentences is way too simplified to go over the whole thing. Working in bigger companies and such also tends to get a better pension (over the public one) with some having additional pensions and such.
  Edit to add: not all do actual work; some of my retired family volunteer (or do both)
  
  I don't know if Japan is a good example but Korea sure is. Broke seniors collect garbage and resort to sex work
- I intend to sue for everything i put in. On the grounds that them not paying me back is theft.
  Social security funds itself and they have zero right to take it to give to scumbag billionaires. Its not their money.
  
  You get that by suing you're lodging a complaint with the same people that robbed you, right?
- Yacht money for the rich. They need it more than the old and disabled
- Conservatives will open their mouths for the piss of lies. The ones that dont or cant work will be screwed
- Your fund...
  Our fund
- TL;DR: you paying in now is funding paying out now.
  Your contributions fund today's recipients. When you eventually become a recipient then the contributors of that day fund you.
  This is the way of all superannuation funds around the world, they rely on the current generation of workers to fund the previous generations' retirement (or the current generations' disabled, etc.)
  It's basically a pyramid scheme.
  
  And it's falling apart since less and less people get born so you will never get out what you have paid in. It's a system designed for the Boomer generation.
So... my only income is SSDI.
Thats Disability.
From my entirely self-interested POV:
Optimistic View:
They don't actually directly destroy the underlying records and computer systems that keep those records and disperse payments for those already in the system, they layoff people that process new applicants and re-evaluations, and I can hopefully coast by unnoticed, at least until Congress actually passes a law to slash all payments by some fraction and/or just blanket remove a bunch of people by... some ruleset.
Pessimistic View:
They let Elon and the Broccoli boys in, they just break everything and well actually everything we broke was fraud and the proof is uh shut up, and I starve to death, unhoused, in... 30 to 60 days.
Realistic View:
Impossible to estimate in clown world.
...
I will tell ya'll that I've gotten my last two payments nearly a week early, completely out of sync with what their web portal says.
Normally it varies by a day or two off of the typical payment date because of weekends or holidays or somethinf, but that is actually reflected in the web portal.
Last two months they are not even bothering to update the date on the web portal to match the actual pay out date.
They are terrified that the Trump admin will nuke the whole thing at any moment, and are trying to buy people time.
Not fucking good.
- If their actions are going to kill you then you are justified in defending yourself.
  
  How would someone defend themselves in this instance? Double credit for how to do it with an unknown disability.
- They are terrified that the Trump admin will nuke the whole thing at any moment, and are trying to buy people time.
  You're probably lucky enough to be in the jurisdiction of someone or some team that is actually empathetic.
  Unfortunately, they'll be the first against the wall when the doge comes.
  Good luck mon ami (from someone outside the US, looking in in horror).
  
  Been saying this for a year now:
  I'm open to a sham marriage for residency if you are!
  People apparently thought I was joking, as if something like this wasn't obviously coming.
  As for jurisdiction...
  I have it set up as a direct deposit to my bank account, what with having had my car stolen and being crippled and all, makes cashing a mailed check extremely painful.
  I have no clue how the undergirding bureacracy handles it. AFAIK, it would be a federal level system, with nothing really to do with any local office, but I don't know for sure.
- My administrative law judge hearing was rescheduled because of Carter's death. Now I have to wait till June. I seriously wonder if it'll exist by then.
  
  Hope for the best, prepare for the worst, if there's anything you actually have the means or contacts to prepare with or for...
  What a fucking mess.
General Strike starting to look awfully good…
Nothing will meaningfully improve until the rich fear for their lives
- Amen.
- I don't want to live in a violent society but the billionaires are the ones committing violence. Therefore we should defend ourselves
This is a great idea. Old people never vote.
- I'm not sure the qons plan on elections.
  When fElon keeps talking about the need to "move fast" and Bannon talks about muzzle velocity, it's not because the things they are doing are wanted by a majority of the country, or even most of the magamorons that voted for this shit. They feel the need to speed-run through this as fast as possible before anyone can stop them or do anything later (by voting) to reverse this shit show.
  
  Yea, that's what out looks like ri me too. Hopefully they don't get away with it.
- They won't be voting if they starve and die before the next election.
- Why do you still think voting matters anymore? You're all still in denial. It's over.
- Take a look at Gen Z dumbasses
  And I'm saying this as a Gen Z
- If Trump is to be believed, there won’t be any more elections to vote in.
- Remember that racism has no age limit. These people will blame immigrants and be glad that their social security paid for their deportation.
  
  Let's not castigate an entire generation now, shall we? Broad generalizations are exactly where racism starts.
There we go. Purge all the old people that vote republican and use social security. Disabled people are fucked no matter what. See Trump's remarks to his uncle about his disabled son.
Then they need to pay back every fucking dime we have paid into it. It’s not their fucking money, it’s ours.
Ssa and healthcare are like our biggest spenders. Maybe this is how he'll find "wasteful spending".
He's not wrong. If you program a robot to find some cure for global warming or something, it'll probably go around killing people. This is exactly what Trump is doing.

63 comments