GOP in Control: Cuts to Social Security; Medicare; Medicaid; ACA & CHIPS Despite the Denials

Impact of GOP's plan, vision, and goals

Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, ACA, and CHIPs cuts again in the news and addressed by President Biden, and rebuttal from Trump and his mouthpiece vis-à-vis his earlier remarks re; those cuts from NEWSWEEK with this headline:

“Joe Biden Issues Social Security Warning”

President Biden once again warned of the threat that Trump would pose to Social Security if he wins back the White House saying in a post on X (formerly Twitter): “Trump was just one vote away from repealing the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Now, he's determined to try again, running to ‘terminate' it’ — and cut Medicare and Social Security while he's at it. I won't let it happen.”

When asked for comment, Trump spokesperson and routine nasty mouthpiece, Steven Cheung, told Newsweek: 

Steven Cheung who thinks and writes for Trump

“Crooked Joe Biden's cognitive decline must be getting worse because President Trump has consistently said he will not touch Social Security and Medicare.”

The future of Social Security, which faces a severe financial shortfall in the coming years, has become a top issue ahead of the 2024 election, set to be a rematch of the 2020 election between Biden and Trump.

Biden’s comments come after Trump appeared to suggest in an interview earlier this month that he was he was open to making cuts to Social Security and Medicare after previously being opposed to touching the programs that millions of Americans rely on for financial and medical support.

This is what Trump said on CNBC's Squawk Box in response to a question about Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid: “There is a lot you can do in terms of entitlements, in terms of cutting, and in terms of also the theft and the bad management of entitlements.”

Then at a rally in Ohio a few days after that interview, Trump sought to walk back those earlier comments, saying: “I made a promise that I will always keep Social Security, Medicare. We always will keep it. We never will cut it.” (According to the AP).

Trump then claimed Social Security would be gone if Biden wins a second term, despite the president vowing to protect and strengthen the program, saying in true Trump style, saying: “Americans will not be able to have Social Security with Biden in office because he's destroying the economics of our country. And that includes Medicare, by the way, and American seniors are going to be in big trouble.”

During his State of the Union address, President Biden strongly pledged to protect Social Security and Medicare after accusing Republicans of wanting to make cuts to the programs while giving tax breaks to the wealthy.

President Biden concluded his SOS remarking saying: “Many of my friends on the other side of the aisle want to put Social Security on the chopping block. If anyone here tries to cut Social Security of Medicare or raise the retirement age, I will stop you. The working people who built this country pay more into Social Security than millionaires and billionaires do. It's not fair [...] I'll protect and strengthen Social Security and make the wealthy pay their fair share.”

My 2 Cents: A bit of GOP history and hypocrisy on this subject:

* Former ousted Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA); Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA), and 130 other House Republicans voted to raise the Social Security retirement age to 70 in 2015.

* Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) said: “One thing that you probably haven't ever heard from a politician: It will be my objective to phase out Social Security. To pull it up by the roots, and get rid of it.”

* Sen. John Thune (R-SD) argued that Social Security and Medicare benefits should be cut.

* Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL) championed a plan to put Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security on the chopping block every five years, thus putting the economic security of 65 million Social Security beneficiaries at risk. 

The Republican Study Committee (RSC), which represents nearly 80% of House Republicans, released their 2024 budget proposal which called for raising the Social Security retirement age, thus forcing Americans to work longer for less.

In the same budget, they outline a total of $5 trillion in tax cuts skewed to the wealthy and corporations, cutting taxes by at least $175,000 a year for the wealthiest 0.1% of Americans.

Finally, and seen here is a state-by-state analysis from House Budget Committee Democrats shows what raising the retirement age would harm and shrink benefits for millions of people across the United States. Check out.

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