The state of Social Security amid Trump's cuts to federal workforce

If you're among the roughly 70 million people who claim Social Security, things might get a bit more complicated.

The Social Security Administration is among the many departments facing staff reductions and budget cuts. Acting Commissioner Leland Dudek appears concerned about what Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency Group are doing.

The Washington Post obtained notes from a meeting this week where Dudek said, “DOGE people are learning, and they will make mistakes, but we have to let them see what is going on at the SSA.”

Martin O'Malley was commissioner of the Social Security Administration under President Biden. Plus, he’s the former governor of Maryland.

“I believe that they are driving this agency into a total system collapse in the months ahead,” O’Malley says, “given the pace at which they are firing people, paying people to leave, absolutely no effort at knowledge transfer.”

How does the Social Security Administration work? 

“The  Social Security Administration was created 90 years ago. And every month, without fail, the Social Security Administration pays out benefits that people have worked their whole lives to earn, whether those are retirement benefits or disability benefits. And Social Security collects from people active in the economy the dollars necessary to operate that pay-as-you-go program year in and year out.

“And so that's what Social Security does. The agency is a lifeline to 72.5 million people. And for half of all seniors over 65 and living alone, Social Security is the only thing that keeps them out of poverty.”

The agency was already at a 50-year staffing low before President Trump was sworn in. There are plans to slash about 12% of the workforce, close regional hubs and field offices, and eliminate entire programs. How do you expect these cuts and closures to impact those who rely on Social Security?

“It's going to have a very swift and immediate impact on not only people that are trying to get the help they need to access their benefits or maybe go into a payment status once they reach 62 or 67.

“And let's be sure that we separate two things. The critics of Social Security have it absolutely backward. They say that Social Security is insolvent when, in point of fact, Social Security has been around for 90 years. It is a pay-as-you-go program. And there's nothing about it that can't be addressed once again by Congress,  as they address the 75-year forecast periodically, like every 40 years. But the piece of it that actually worked really well for a long time was when Social Security was able to operate on 1.2% overhead and thereby provide a high level of customer service. But in the last 10 years, House Republicans have reduced the staffing at Social Security to a 50-year low, even as baby boomers swell their ranks every day to an all-time high.”

 What about those of us who aren't getting benefits yet are paying into the system? Is there cause for concern?

“ I think we should all be very concerned. I mean, this new co-presidency is dismantling the institutions and the foundations of our republic as quickly as they possibly can. So we should all be concerned. I'm hopeful that members of Congress will put the brakes on this wrecking ball operation.

“I've traveled all over the country and every community in America, there is a social security office and each of their waiting areas is packed with people who need their earned benefits.”

Are there problems with Social Security that could be fixed?

“ Yes, absolutely. Last year, I was asked to go there, not because the agency was doing well. I was asked to go there because they had been in 10 years of decline as their staffing was reduced. But those men and women turned around every service indicator, timeliness of disability determinations, the speed of answering the 1-800 number brought it down from 42 minutes to 12 and a half minutes.

“But now, all of those are going in the wrong direction. And you're going to see more frequent, interruptions of systems going down ultimately, I believe leading to an interruption of benefits. How long that interruption will last, I don't know. But it's headed in a bad direction, and they're driving it there.”

Thomas Danielian produced and edited this interview for broadcast with Micaela Rodriguez. Allison Hagan adapted it for the web.