Yeah, MAGA. Yeah Jim Mageau. You won't miss your Social Security checks, right?
Jessica Corbett for Common Dreams
As U.S. President Donald Trump's temporary leader of the
Social Security Administration threatened to shut down the agency over an
unfavorable court ruling on Friday, the billionaire commerce secretary came
under fire for suggesting that only "fraudsters" will complain if
they don't get their earned benefits.
Maybe HE won't miss his checks
U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick appeared on All-In—a
podcast hosted by "four billionaire besties"—on Thursday. A brief
clip of his interview, which lasted an hour and 45 minutes, made the rounds on
social media Friday.
Lutnick told two of the hosts that if the SSA didn't send
out checks this month, his 94-year-old mother-in-law "wouldn't call and
complain," but "a fraudster always makes the loudest noise,
screaming, yelling, and complaining."
Critics were quick to point out Lutnick's wealth. As More
Perfect Union posted,
"His net worth is estimated at $2 billion."
Richard Phillips, pensions and tax policy director for U.S.
Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Ranking Member Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), called the
commerce secretary's comments "shameful."
"Nearly 40% of seniors rely on Social Security for a
majority of their income and nearly 1 in 7 rely on it for more than 90% of
their income," according to Phillips. "These people would call due to
missing checks because their very survival depends on it."
The watchdog group Public Citizen similarly pushed back on social media, saying: "You know who actually makes the loudest noise? Someone who depends on Social Security to buy groceries. Someone who depends on Social Security to pay rent. Someone who depends on Social Security to survive. But billionaires like Howard Lutnick don't care about those people."
Groundwork
Collaborative chief of policy and advocacy Alex Jacquez said in a statement that "the Trump
administration just told seniors that they should shut up and sit down if they
don't receive their Social Security checks on time. The real 'fraudsters' are
Trump's out-of-touch billionaire donors and advisers denying seniors their
hard-earned benefits to pay for their next tax giveaway."
Everett Kelley, president of the American Federation of
Government Employees, a union for federal workers, also tied Lutnick's
remarks to Republican tax ambitions—as well as a broader attack on the federal
bureaucracy by Trump and the de facto leader of his Department
of Government Efficiency( DOGE), billionaire Elon Musk.
"First, Elon called Social Security a 'Ponzi scheme'
and said we need to eliminate it," Kelley said. "Then DOGE started
trying to cut SSA staff. Now Lutnick says 'don't complain' when the payments
stop. They are taking money from working-class people in order to give it to
their rich friends."
As Common Dreams reported earlier, acting Social Security
Administration Commissioner Leland Dudek is threatening to shut down the agency
in response to a federal judge's Thursday order blocking DOGE's
SSA "data grab." The Washington Post later revealed that the official "is consulting with
agency lawyers and the Justice Department" about the possible shutdown.
Some political observers see the Republican administration's
attacks on the SSA—and the rest of the federal government—as a major
opportunity for the Democratic Party, which has minorities in both chambers of
Congress.
"If Dems have any strategic mojo left, they will clip
this and play it on a nonstop television ad loop in the two Florida districts
holding special congressional elections," Helaine Olen of the American
Economic Liberties Project said about
the Lutnick interview. "Seniors will rightly whine when their checks don't
show up."
Already, some seniors have publicly shared stories
of benefits incorrectly shut off since Trump took office, and some
congressional Democrats are taking aim at his administration. Rep. John Larson
(D-Conn.), a longtime SSA defender who has framed the DOGE assault as a push
toward privatization, posted the
commerce secretary's video on social media.
"Trump and Musk's cuts to the Social Security
Administration could lead to the delay, denial, and disruption of your EARNED
BENEFITS," Larson said Friday. "For 40% of our seniors, Social
Security is the only income they have. They can't just wait for their next
check."
Also responding to the clip, Sen. Chris Murphy
(D-Conn.) said, "They are getting ready to destroy Social
Security. Because the billionaires don't need it. Prepping the ground here by
shaming people who dare complain if their Social Security check
disappears."
The Social Security comments aren't the only reason the
commerce secretary is facing intense criticism this week. On Wednesday,
he told viewers of Fox News' "Jesse
Watters Primetime" to buy stock in Musk's electric vehicle maker, Tesla.
One watchdog leader noted that Lutnick "conveniently forgot to mention his
family business empire holds nearly $840 million in the company."
The nonpartisan Campaign Legal Center on Friday filed a
complaint with the Office of Government Ethics and an ethics official at the
U.S. Department of Commerce, urging them to investigate Lutnick's comments
about Tesla stock—which has been crashing due to protests of the company
resulting from Musk's work for the Trump administration.
