President Joe Biden pledged to put Social Security on a road to solvency when running for office in 2020. However, Biden has refuted Republican discussions of reducing benefits or raising the retirement age, two of the most often mentioned measures to prolong the program’s viability during his 2024 reelection campaign. If not much changes, Social Security’s financial problems are certain to get worse. The program’s trust fund is already expected to deplete in around ten years, which would force significant budget cuts throughout.
Biden defends social security
Feb. 9, 2023, in Tampa, Florida: “If anyone tries to cut Social Security, we’re going to stop it,” said Biden. In reference to a well-publicized altercation he had with Republican lawmakers during the 2023 State of the Union address, Biden stated, “It seemed they had reached a consensus to remove these budget cuts from consideration.” I sincerely hope so. I genuinely mean it. More lately, Biden has attacked former President Donald Trump, his presumed opponent in 2024, by bringing up the Social Security debate. On March 11, Biden took offense when Trump said, “There is a lot you can do in terms of entitlements in terms of cutting.” Shortly after Trump’s remarks were made public, Biden declared, “I will stop anyone who tries to cut Social Security or Medicare, or raise the retirement age again.” He was speaking in New Hampshire.
Tax plan faces opposition
But analysts warned that maintaining the current course puts the program’s finances in jeopardy. “Neither the president nor Congress want to even talk about the problem. However, there will come a day of reckoning, according to Eugene Steuerle, a fellow at the Urban Institute, a think tank in Washington, D.C. “Revenues are inadequate to pay current bills, much less bills that rise as a share of national income.” In his fiscal year 2025 budget, which was unveiled on March 12, Biden reaffirmed that he is against pension reductions and retirement age increases.
By guaranteeing that Americans with higher incomes pay Social Security taxes on all of their earnings, something they do not already do, the budget supported “extending solvency” for the program. That might improve Social Security’s financial situation to some extent, but the budget included little information on the specifics of this tax rise. In Congress, presidential budgets are seen as doomed from the moment they are introduced, particularly in cases when the opposing party occupies at least one house, as the Republicans now do in the House.
Social security funding at risk
“Like a car accelerating down a hill toward a barrier, the Biden proposals basically would move back the barrier a bit, only delaying the reckoning that is required,” Steuerle stated. It is becoming late in Biden’s term to pass policies that would dramatically increase the actuarial life of Social Security, yet the president has categorically and repeatedly rejected two possible solutions: benefit reductions and raising the retirement age. This promise is rated as Stalled. Rep. John Larson, D-Conn., presented H.R. 5723 on October 26. The bill contains many of the Social Security reforms that Joe Biden proposed during the 2020 presidential campaign. Benefits would be increased under the law in a number of ways; we’ve tracked those items in a separate Biden pledge. However, it would also deal with the question of Social Security’s long-term viability. In keeping his word, Biden declared that he would require Americans “with especially high wages to pay the same taxes on those earnings that middle-class families pay.”
| Fact |
| President Biden is dedicated to preserving and enhancing Social Security and is against benefit reductions. |
| President Biden opposes benefit cutbacks and is committed to maintaining and strengthening Social Security. |
| A 12.4% Social Security payroll tax on income over $400,000 is part of Biden’s tax plan to help pay for the program. |
| A new 15% corporate minimum tax on profits exceeding $1 billion is also included in the tax package. |
| The objective of Biden’s tax plans is to increase financial stability for the elderly and disabled by requiring the wealthiest Americans to contribute fairly. This will prolong Social stability’s viability. |
| By compelling the wealthiest Americans to contribute equitably, Biden’s tax ideas aim to promote financial security for the elderly and disabled. This will extend the sustainability of social stability. |
Political roadblocks for tax reform
The Larson measure adopts the strategy that Biden proposed, which entails modifying the payroll tax computations that serve as the foundation for the trust funds that sustain Social Security. Payroll taxes are now only deducted from an individual’s yearly salary up to $142,800. The payroll tax would now also be applied to any wages over $400,000 under the Larson measure. Payroll taxes on wages between the two criteria would not apply.
