Photo: Alamy
President Trump has often touted his strong support for Social Security and Medicare in America, and this week, he has doubled down on his vow to protect both for the nation’s seniors.
In an exclusive interview with Breitbart, Trump explained that while “entitlements” from the federal government could certainly be managed, he reiterated his promise to protect the two programs that seniors rely on after retirement.
Trump told the outlet, “We’re not cutting Social Security. It’s very simple. It’s a simple answer. We’re not cutting Social Security.”
He also stated that he plans to cut other entitlement programs in a prospective 2025 presidency, but vowed that neither Social Security nor Medicare would be touched. Trump added, “But we’re not going to do anything to hurt them.”
During Joe Biden’s State of the Union address last week, he claimed that Republicans were posturing to cut Social Security. However, there is no evidence to suggest this is currently true.
In response to Biden’s claim, Trump wrote on Truth Social, “Republicans have no plan to cut Social Security, a made up story by Crooked Joe!”
It is well known, however, that former Speaker of the House Paul Ryan (R) did formerly support reforming Social Security in a radical way. Per the Economic Policy Institute, Ryan “championed” privatizing both throughout his political career in Washington, D.C.
Trump’s recent reiteration of his strong stance on Social Security and Medicare also comes in the wake of Daily Wire host Ben Shapiro’s controversial comments that ignited a social media firestorm.
Shapiro said, “No one in the United States should be retiring at 65 years old. Frankly, I think retirement itself is a stupid idea unless you have some sort of health problem. Everybody who I know who is elderly, who is retired, is dead within five years.”
President Trump initially vowed to protect Social Security and Medicare during the early stages of his 2024 campaign, slamming Gov. Ron DeSantis, R-Fla., who had a much weaker stance on those two issues during his congressional terms.
“Unlike Ron DeSanctimonious—who voted to gut Medicare and Social Security and voted 3 times to raise the retirement age to 70—I will ALWAYS protect Medicare and Social Security for our great seniors,” he pledged in June 2023.