Both President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump have repeatedly vowed to protect Social Security, but neither has issued detailed proposals to address the beloved entitlement program’s looming insolvency.
During tonight’s debate, Trump warned about what the negative impacts of another Biden administration on Social Security.
The combined Social Security trust funds – which help support monthly payments to the elderly, survivors and people with disabilities – are expected to be exhausted in 2035 unless Congress acts, according to its trustees’ latest annual report. After that, payroll tax revenue and other income sources will only be able to cover 83% of benefits owed.
Biden has said he would increase taxes on higher-income Americans to shore up Social Security’s finances and has repeatedly slammed a budget proposal from a conservative House Republican group for containing benefit cuts. The president has also criticized Trump for being open to making cuts in the program.
Trump, meanwhile, has not provided details on how he would fix Social Security’s fiscal woes. During a CNBC interview in March, he referenced that there was a lot one could do in terms of cutting entitlements. But he later said that he was referring to addressing theft and bad management of Social Security and Medicare and repeated his promise to protect them.
“I don’t suspect that you’re going to see anything come out before the election from either camp,” said Gary Engelhardt, an economics professor at Syracuse University.
