Sen. Angus King (I-Maine) took goal at tech billionaire Elon Musk and Trade Secretary Howard Lutnick on Monday, pronouncing they’re attractive in an “assault” on Social Safety.
“I never thought I’d say this, but social security is under assault,” King mentioned in a video posted to X.
“Every day we learn something new, where Elon Musk and his crowd are in the Social Security databases. They’re trying to get personal information. They are pushing aside the professionals that work there. People are being fired. Regional offices are being closed,” he persisted.
King, who caucuses with the Democrats, famous that Lutnick urged past due remaining week that if Social Safety “didn’t send out their checks this month,” his “mother-in-law, who’s 94, she wouldn’t call and complain.”
The billionaire businessman added, in a podcast: “She’d think something got messed up, and she’ll get it next month. A fraudster always makes the loudest noise, screaming, yelling and complaining.”
King, then again, urged maximum American citizens don’t have the similar revel in as Lutnick’s better half’s mother.
“Well, I’m sorry, but there are people across the country, if that check doesn’t come, they’re in trouble,” King mentioned within the Monday video. “Drugs, meals, hire. There are literally thousands of folks on this nation that Social Safety take a look at makes the entire distinction.
“And what worries me is that what we’re seeing is a kind of slow motion — actually, it’s not that slow motion, it’s pretty fast — undermining of the structure of Social Security,” he added.
His feedback come after Musk, whom President Trump tapped to go up the Division of Govt Potency, known as Social Safety “the biggest Ponzi scheme of all time” previous this month and urged there may well be masses of billions of bucks of attainable cuts focused on waste in entitlement methods.
The rhetoric has precipitated pushback from mavens and advocates who’ve accused Trump allies of spreading false claims in regards to the quantity of fraud if truth be told present in this system.
Trump has vowed to not minimize Social Safety advantages.
Lutnick additionally mentioned on Thursday that he’s towards elevating the retirement age — an offer some Republicans have floated in Congress so that you can lend a hand shore up solvency for this system.
