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retirement age
Senators Warn Trump and GOP Are 'Considering Raising the Retirement Age' to Cut Social Security
A group of Democratic lawmakers pushed President Donald Trump on whether he would veto legislation that cuts Social Security.
Jun 16, 2026
A group of Democratic US senators warned Monday that congressional Republicans and President Donald Trump could be gearing up for a push for raise the retirement age as part of a broader—and deeply unpopular—effort to slash Social Security benefits after the 2026 midterm elections.
Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) wrote in a letter to Trump that they have "renewed concerns" that his administration is "considering raising the retirement age, cutting the earned benefits of millions of Americans," despite the president's repeated vows to shield the program.
"Republicans have a history of attempting to increase the retirement age, privatize Social Security, or otherwise cut Social Security benefits, and some congressional Republicans have called to raise the retirement age or means-test benefits," the lawmakers wrote, emphasizing that GOP lawmakers "are not alone."
"In an interview this past fall, [Social Security Administration] Commissioner Frank Bisignano said—and later attempted to retract after public outcry—that your administration was considering this idea," the Democratic senators wrote of raising the retirement age, which would cut Social Security benefits across the board.
The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office analysis of a 2024 Republican proposal to raise Social Security's full retirement age found that doing so would cut benefits by an average of 13% for people born after 1971.
The Democratic senators sent their letter to Trump days after Social Security's trustees said in their annual report that the program will be unable to pay out full benefits by the end of 2032—a quarter earlier than projected last year—unless Congress takes action. The finding was seen as evidence of the damage inflicted by Trump's policies, including his tariffs and tax cuts for the rich.
Ahead of the trustees report's release, House Speaker Mike Johnson declared that Social Security needs to be "adjusted and fixed" and said Republicans would release their plan "next year," without specifying what the proposal would entail.
Mike Johnson admits Republicans will cut Medicaid, Medicare, and Social Security next year pic.twitter.com/bgyAb4ppyw
— FactPost (@factpostnews) June 8, 2026
In their letter to Trump on Monday, the trio of Democratic senators demanded to know if the president is aware of "Republican plans to cut Medicare, Medicaid, or Social Security benefits" and whether he would veto GOP legislation that slashes those programs.
"Raising the retirement age—or otherwise cutting benefits—only worsens the looming retirement income crisis," the lawmakers wrote. "Doing so hurts older Americans, cutting monthly benefits and forcing millions into poverty."
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Let’s Celebrate Social Security’s 89th Birthday By Protecting and Expanding It
In this election year, voters should honor this milestone by supporting the party that is working to expand, not cut, their earned benefits.
Aug 14, 2024
On August 14, 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Social Security into law. Eighty-nine years later, our Social Security system is at a crossroads. Even as we rightfully celebrate the widespread, enduring popularity and success of Social Security, it is imperative we recognize the threat aimed at our earned benefits by Republican politicians.
If the Trump-Vance ticket prevails this November, former U.S. President Donald Trump will continue his long track record of trying to cut and dismantle Social Security. Don’t be fooled by his rhetoric to the contrary. When Trump was president, he proposed cuts to Social Security in every one of his budgets.
When Trump couldn’t get the cuts enacted, he employed the old tactic of “starve the beast.” Figuring that tax cuts are easier to enact than benefit cuts, he sought to hold a Covid-19 relief package hostage to Congress agreeing to cut Social Security’s dedicated revenue. When that failed, he grabbed the questionable power to go after its dedicated revenue unilaterally—something without precedent. Because Trump was limited to executive action, he was able to only defer the revenue, but he made clear that he would not just defer the revenue, but eliminate it, if he were reelected. Insufficient dedicated revenue leads to automatic cuts. Conveniently, automatic cuts means there is no one to clearly be held accountable.
Republican politicians are ignoring the will of their own voters in favor of protecting their wealthy donors.
If Trump wins again, he will be even worse. Imagine Donald Trump as president, paired with a Republican Congress dominated by Speaker Mike Johnson’s (R-La.) vision of a fiscal commission to cut Social Security behind closed doors and the Republican Study Committee’s plans to cut Social Security by $1.5 trillion over just the next decade and trillions more after that (including raising the retirement age). That would be a nightmare scenario for Social Security and the millions of Americans and their families who rely on their earned Social Security benefits.
And it is just as important to recognize the immense opportunity that is available to make Social Security even better going forward.
As a Senator, Vice President Kamala Harris cosponsored legislation protecting and expanding Social Security. And her fantastic running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, shares her commitment to Social Security. When he was in Congress he too cosponsored legislation to protect and expand Social Security.
He understands, from first-hand experience, just how important Social Security is. Here’s what he said in 2010:
As a young man watching my father die of a lengthy illness and a nine-year-old brother at home and a stay-at-home mother watching Social Security survivor benefits be there to allow my little brother to go on and go to college and my mother to go back in the workforce. Many people will say and they are absolutely right, “Pull yourself up by the bootstraps.” They were right of that. We just didn’t have any boots. They were loaned to us by Social Security. And for that we have paid that back ten times over. Our family is stronger, our community is stronger, our country is stronger.
Both Vice President Harris and Gov. Walz recognize that Social Security is the most secure, efficient, and important source of retirement income for the vast majority of Americans. But its benefits are inadequately low.
With the disappearance of traditional private-sector retirement plans, our nation is facing a retirement income crisis. Too many Americans fear that they must work until they die, because they will not be able to retire without a drastic decline in their standard of living. The solution is to expand Social Security.
Both Vice President Harris and Governor Walz understand this reality, and will fight to expand Social Security. They want to require multimillionaires and billionaires to start paying their fair share.
In stark contrast, Trump and his Republican allies in Congress support cutting Social Security and ultimately ending the program as we know it. This is laid out in the budget proposal from the Republican Study Committee (RSC), a group that counts about 80% of House Republicans as members. And rather than require the wealthy to pay more, they want to give huge tax breaks to the uber-wealthy. Republican politicians are ignoring the will of their own voters in favor of protecting their wealthy donors.
In this election year, voters should celebrate Social Security’s 89th birthday by supporting the party that is working to expand, not cut, their earned benefits.
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Trustee's Report Reminds Us: Social Security's Future Is on the Ballot
If benefits were suddenly slashed, not only would members of Congress lose re-election, they likely wouldn’t be able to appear in public without being screamed at and chased down the street!
May 11, 2024
Every year, Social Security’s Board of Trustees issues a report detailing Social Security’s long-term financial outlook. This year’s report, like all its predecessors, shows that Social Security’s future is a question of values and choices, not affordability. It is a reminder that Congress must take action on Social Security sometime in the next 11 years — and our country’s two major political parties have very different visions for our Social Security system.
Democrats want to protect and expand Social Security, and pay for it by requiring millionaires and billionaires to contribute more of their fair share. Republicans want to slash Social Security’s already modest benefits, while giving massive tax handouts to the ultra-wealthy.
These competing visions should be front and center in voters’ minds because the trustees report projects that Congress must take action to prevent Social Security’s benefits from being automatically reduced by 17 percent in 2035.
There is no question that Congress will act. Around one in five Americans receive monthly Social Security benefits. That is one in three households. If benefits were suddenly slashed, not only would members of Congress lose re-election, they likely wouldn’t be able to appear in public without being screamed at and chased down the street!
The real question isn’t whether Congress will act, but what action it will take. We know what Democrats will do if they control Congress and the White House, because their position is open and transparent. It is clearly spelled out in legislation that has been introduced in Congress, in President Biden’s budget which states plainly that he supports those legislative efforts, and in the 2020 Democratic Platform.
These proposals have broad support within the Democratic Party, from progressives to moderates. They are also bipartisan in the way that matters — overwhelming support from Democratic, Republican, and independent voters.
Republicans are less open about their position, but a recent budget released by the Republican Study Committee (RSC), a group that comprises about 80 percent of House Republicans (including every member of Republican leadership), reveals the truth. It slashes Social Security benefits by $1.5 trillion in just the next 10 years. The budget’s cuts include raising the retirement age and decimating middle class benefits. The very same budget also includes trillions in tax cuts for the wealthy and giant corporations!
The RSC budget, while cloaked in vague and intentionally misleading language, is still more honest than usual. Generally, Republicans don’t openly endorse Social Security cuts, because they know how unpopular they are even with their own voters. Instead, they talk in Orwellian language about “saving” or “strengthening” Social Security. They want Americans to think that we can no longer afford Social Security, despite the ridiculousness of that claim, in the hope that their constituents will be grateful — not furious — when they receive at least some of their earned benefits.
Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, was uncharacteristically honest when he recently said, “There is a lot you can do… in terms of cutting” Social Security. Knowing how unpopular cuts are, Trump generally denies he wants to cut benefits. When he was president, though, he included Social Security cuts in every one of his budgets. And prior to running for president, he called for raising the retirement age and privatizing Social Security while labeling it a Ponzi scheme. He has also advocated cutting Social Security’s dedicated funding. This could lead to even deeper benefit cuts down the road, but Trump knows cutting taxes is more popular than cutting benefits.
Trump and his fellow Republicans recognize the unpopularity of their positions. That’s why many of them seek to lure Democrats to join them (hold hands and jump, as they often phrase it) in cutting benefits behind closed doors so that they can share the blame or, even better, confuse voters into blaming Democrats.
Fortunately, the vast majority of Democrats are not taking the bait. But the danger is there. Every so often, Congress must pass legislation to prevent the nation from defaulting on its debts. If the United States ever did default, it would trigger a world-wide economic catastrophe.
The last time Congress voted to avoid default, Republicans tried to hold Social Security hostage, demanding benefit cuts in return for their votes. Fortunately, President Biden called their bluff and then-Speaker Kevin McCarthy folded – infuriating many of his House colleagues.
The next Congress will need to vote to raise the debt ceiling again. And to avert another attempt to take Social Security hostage, it matters who controls the House, Senate, and White House.
If Democrats retake the House of Representatives, Hakeem Jeffries will be speaker. Jeffries will ensure that the House passes a bill to raise the debt ceiling with no cuts to Social Security or any other vital benefits. And President Biden will unquestionably sign it. Indeed, he has promised to protect Social Security against cuts.
Moreover, Jeffries is a cosponsor of legislation to protect and expand Social Security. As Speaker, Jeffries will certainly bring that legislation up for a vote. When that happens, Republican members of Congress will be in a bind. They won’t want to require their billionaire donors to pay more, they won’t want to vote against Social Security, and they won’t want to offer their own alternative.
If the American people are clear on where their members stand and vote accordingly, Congress will enact legislation to protect and expand Social Security well before 2035. Once that happens, the annual trustees report will reveal that Social Security can pay all earned benefits for the foreseeable future.
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