Social Security advocacy groups and Democratic lawmakers say President Donald Trump’s just-released 2021 budget plan betrays his promises not to touch Social Security and Medicare.
Trump’s $4.8 trillion budget proposes to slash the Social Security Administration’s budget by $200 million and cut Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) by $63 billion over 10 years.
The cuts would come at a time “when we should be increasing the agency’s budget because 10,000 baby boomers are retiring every day,” said Linda Benesch, communications director for Social Security Works, in a Monday comment to ThinkAdvisor.
Budget cuts to Social Security “lead to field office closures, long hold times on the 800 number, and a huge backlog for disability claims,” Benesch said. “It makes it more difficult for the American people to claim their earned benefits — exactly the opposite of what Trump promised to do.”