SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
New York businessman Andrew Saul testifies before the Senate Finance Committee during his confirmation hearing to be commissioner of the Social Security Administration in the Dirksen Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill October 02, 2018 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
'A Great Day': Biden Fires Trump's Social Security Boss Who Refused to Resign
'Andrew Saul and David Black were appointed by former President Donald Trump to undermine Social Security.'
Jul 10, 2021
President Biden on Friday fired Social Security Commissioner Andrew Saul, who was appointed by former President Donald Trump, after Saul refused a request to resign.
Saul's deputy, David Black, who was also appointed by former president Donald Trump, resigned Friday upon request.
Saul, 74, a wealthy businessman who owned the now-bankrupt women's apparel company Cache, is a major Republican donor and Trump supporter.
House Democrats and progressive activists have been calling on President Biden to fire Saul for months, accusing Saul of slow-walking the Biden administration's effort to distribute direct coronavirus relief payments to tens of millions of seniors and people with disabilities.
Alex Lawson, Executive Director of Social Security Works said:
"Today is a great day for every current and future Social Security beneficiary.
Andrew Saul and David Black were appointed by former President Donald Trump to undermine Social Security. They've done their very best to carry out that despicable mission. That includes waging a war on people with disabilities, demoralizing the agency's workforce, and delaying President Biden's stimulus checks.
Biden named Kilolo Kijakazi, the current deputy commissioner for retirement and disability policy, to serve as acting commissioner until a permanent nominee is selected.
The White House said:
"Since taking office, Commissioner Saul has undermined and politicized Social Security disability benefits, terminated the agency's telework policy that was utilized by up to 25 percent of the agency's workforce, not repaired SSA's relationships with relevant Federal employee unions including in the context of COVID-19 workplace safety planning, reduced due process protections for benefits appeals hearings, and taken other actions that run contrary to the mission of the agency and the President's policy agenda."
Saul told the Washington Post Friday afternoon that he would not leave his post, challenging the legality of the White House move to oust him. "I consider myself the term-protected Commissioner of Social Security," he said, adding that he plans to be back at work on Monday morning. He called his ouster a "Friday Night Massacre."
"This was the first I or my deputy knew this was coming," Saul said of the email he received from the White House Personnel Office Friday morning. "It was a bolt of lightning no one expected. And right now it's left the agency in complete turmoil."
Richard Fiesta, executive director of the Alliance for Retired Americans said in a late Friday statement:
"Andrew Saul was a disaster for seniors and all Social Security beneficiaries. From day one he was on a mission to gut the Social Security system from the inside. Thank you President Biden for taking decisive action.
"The millions of Americans of all ages who rely or will rely on earned Social Security benefits deserve a Social Security Commissioner who understands and supports the agency's mission."
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
President Biden on Friday fired Social Security Commissioner Andrew Saul, who was appointed by former President Donald Trump, after Saul refused a request to resign.
Saul's deputy, David Black, who was also appointed by former president Donald Trump, resigned Friday upon request.
Saul, 74, a wealthy businessman who owned the now-bankrupt women's apparel company Cache, is a major Republican donor and Trump supporter.
House Democrats and progressive activists have been calling on President Biden to fire Saul for months, accusing Saul of slow-walking the Biden administration's effort to distribute direct coronavirus relief payments to tens of millions of seniors and people with disabilities.
Alex Lawson, Executive Director of Social Security Works said:
"Today is a great day for every current and future Social Security beneficiary.
Andrew Saul and David Black were appointed by former President Donald Trump to undermine Social Security. They've done their very best to carry out that despicable mission. That includes waging a war on people with disabilities, demoralizing the agency's workforce, and delaying President Biden's stimulus checks.
Biden named Kilolo Kijakazi, the current deputy commissioner for retirement and disability policy, to serve as acting commissioner until a permanent nominee is selected.
The White House said:
"Since taking office, Commissioner Saul has undermined and politicized Social Security disability benefits, terminated the agency's telework policy that was utilized by up to 25 percent of the agency's workforce, not repaired SSA's relationships with relevant Federal employee unions including in the context of COVID-19 workplace safety planning, reduced due process protections for benefits appeals hearings, and taken other actions that run contrary to the mission of the agency and the President's policy agenda."
Saul told the Washington Post Friday afternoon that he would not leave his post, challenging the legality of the White House move to oust him. "I consider myself the term-protected Commissioner of Social Security," he said, adding that he plans to be back at work on Monday morning. He called his ouster a "Friday Night Massacre."
"This was the first I or my deputy knew this was coming," Saul said of the email he received from the White House Personnel Office Friday morning. "It was a bolt of lightning no one expected. And right now it's left the agency in complete turmoil."
Richard Fiesta, executive director of the Alliance for Retired Americans said in a late Friday statement:
"Andrew Saul was a disaster for seniors and all Social Security beneficiaries. From day one he was on a mission to gut the Social Security system from the inside. Thank you President Biden for taking decisive action.
"The millions of Americans of all ages who rely or will rely on earned Social Security benefits deserve a Social Security Commissioner who understands and supports the agency's mission."
President Biden on Friday fired Social Security Commissioner Andrew Saul, who was appointed by former President Donald Trump, after Saul refused a request to resign.
Saul's deputy, David Black, who was also appointed by former president Donald Trump, resigned Friday upon request.
Saul, 74, a wealthy businessman who owned the now-bankrupt women's apparel company Cache, is a major Republican donor and Trump supporter.
House Democrats and progressive activists have been calling on President Biden to fire Saul for months, accusing Saul of slow-walking the Biden administration's effort to distribute direct coronavirus relief payments to tens of millions of seniors and people with disabilities.
Alex Lawson, Executive Director of Social Security Works said:
"Today is a great day for every current and future Social Security beneficiary.
Andrew Saul and David Black were appointed by former President Donald Trump to undermine Social Security. They've done their very best to carry out that despicable mission. That includes waging a war on people with disabilities, demoralizing the agency's workforce, and delaying President Biden's stimulus checks.
Biden named Kilolo Kijakazi, the current deputy commissioner for retirement and disability policy, to serve as acting commissioner until a permanent nominee is selected.
The White House said:
"Since taking office, Commissioner Saul has undermined and politicized Social Security disability benefits, terminated the agency's telework policy that was utilized by up to 25 percent of the agency's workforce, not repaired SSA's relationships with relevant Federal employee unions including in the context of COVID-19 workplace safety planning, reduced due process protections for benefits appeals hearings, and taken other actions that run contrary to the mission of the agency and the President's policy agenda."
Saul told the Washington Post Friday afternoon that he would not leave his post, challenging the legality of the White House move to oust him. "I consider myself the term-protected Commissioner of Social Security," he said, adding that he plans to be back at work on Monday morning. He called his ouster a "Friday Night Massacre."
"This was the first I or my deputy knew this was coming," Saul said of the email he received from the White House Personnel Office Friday morning. "It was a bolt of lightning no one expected. And right now it's left the agency in complete turmoil."
Richard Fiesta, executive director of the Alliance for Retired Americans said in a late Friday statement:
"Andrew Saul was a disaster for seniors and all Social Security beneficiaries. From day one he was on a mission to gut the Social Security system from the inside. Thank you President Biden for taking decisive action.
"The millions of Americans of all ages who rely or will rely on earned Social Security benefits deserve a Social Security Commissioner who understands and supports the agency's mission."
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.