President Donald Trump and Republican Party leadership's complacency on a looming financial crisis has some members of the GOP caucus hitting the panic button.
According to a report from Politico, Social Security, always a hot-button subject for both parties, is facing a financial cliff, and no one seems to want to talk about it.
The trust fund that bankrolls monthly checks to retirees "is set to be drained of reserves" in late 2032. That means tens of millions of Americans age 62 and older, as well as children and widowed spouses who depend upon survivor benefits following the death of a family member, would witness their monthly payments "shrink by more than 20 percent" — or an average of about $500 a month — unless Congress and the president act.
According to the report, "Capitol Hill saw a noticeable surge this summer in the sense of urgency to enact a fix, and alliances have started forming between prominent Republicans and Democrats rallying for a solution. But President Donald Trump and congressional leaders have yet to join the calls to action or back any of the numerous bipartisan bills aimed at preventing benefit cuts."
"This train wreck is going to happen," Rep. Steve Womack (R-AR) told Politico. "So as early as six years from now, we're going to have to have a plan. And of course, I'm a big believer that we need to deal with it now, or we need to start the process of dealing with it now."
Trump has yet to signal interest in a specific fix for the federal government's single largest safety-net program, instead sticking to broad, vague "promises to safeguard benefits."
House Appropriations Chair Tom Cole (R-OK) recalled discussing the issue with Trump during his first term as president. "He said, 'Tom, I'll be for this the first day of my second term,'" Cole told reporters this summer about trying to get Trump to push for a fix. "Well, we're here."
Senate Majority Leader John Thune and Speaker Mike Johnson rarely discuss the approaching benefit cliff, nor have they called to advance any of the bills lawmakers have proposed to prevent it. This prompted criticism this summer from top Democrats "demanding the two GOP leaders put forward their plan to protect Social Security."
