Social Security isn’t just another government program.
It’s the lifeline that millions of Americans count on — especially low-income families, seniors, and disabled workers.
It’s earned, not given.
And right now, it’s under threat.

The Trump administration and its allies have floated plans that could weaken, privatize, or dismantle the very system that keeps millions of people from falling into poverty.

If we care about economic security — if we care about fairness — then protecting Social Security isn’t optional.
It’s urgent.

Here’s why Social Security matters, how it’s funded, how it’s being attacked, and what we can do to save it.

Saving Social Security: Why It Matters for Low-Income Families — and How We Must Protect It

What Is Social Security, Really?

When people hear "Social Security," they often think it’s a handout.
It’s not.

Social Security is a self-funded insurance program that every working American pays into during their career.

• How It Works:

  • You pay 6.2% of your paycheck into Social Security.

  • Your employer matches that amount.

  • Self-employed workers pay the full 12.4% themselves.

• That money doesn't go into some mysterious government vault.
  It goes directly into a trust fund — a fund that pays benefits to:

  • Retirees

  • Disabled workers

  • Widows, widowers, and survivors

  • Children of deceased workers

In 2023, about 67 million Americans received Social Security benefits.
For many, it’s the only income they have.

How Social Security Supports Low-Income Families

Social Security is especially critical for low-income Americans:

🔹 Retirement Security:
For about 40% of seniors, Social Security provides 90% or more of their income after retirement. (Source: SSA Annual Report)

🔹 Poverty Prevention:
Without Social Security, about 22 million Americans — including 1 in 3 seniors — would fall below the poverty line.

🔹 Support for Survivors:
Children who lose a parent can receive Social Security survivor benefits, helping to stabilize families in crisis.

🔹 Disability Benefits:
Workers who become too sick or injured to work rely on Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) to survive.

For low-wage workers who spent a lifetime doing hard labor, minimum-wage jobs, or gig work, Social Security is the difference between dignity and disaster.

How Trump and His Allies Threaten Social Security (Expanded)

During his time in office, former President Trump made it clear that Social Security — the backbone of American retirement — was not safe from political interference.
Rather than working to strengthen or expand it, Trump and many of his political allies proposed policies that would slowly starve Social Security of funding, weaken its protections, and open the door to dismantling it entirely.

Here’s how:

🔥 1. Defunding Social Security Through Permanent Payroll Tax Cuts

In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Trump issued an executive order to temporarily defer payroll taxes for certain workers.
At first glance, it sounded like a tax break.
But it came with a catch: payroll taxes are how Social Security is funded.

• Every paycheck you earn, 6.2% goes into Social Security.

• Your employer matches that.

• Without that steady stream of contributions, the Social Security trust fund would run dry much faster.

Trump even stated openly that if reelected, he would consider eliminating the payroll tax permanently.
Translation: No funding stream means no Social Security payments.

It wasn’t a plan to “help workers.”
It was a plan to starve Social Security quietly, making cuts seem "necessary" later.

🔥 2. Privatizing Social Security

Privatization isn’t a new idea — Wall Street has pushed it for years.
Trump and many Republican allies have floated versions of this idea: turning part of Social Security into private investment accounts.

What would that mean?

• Instead of guaranteed monthly benefits, your retirement would depend on stock market performance.

• In good years, maybe you'd be fine.

• In bad years — like 2008 or 2020 — your life savings could disappear.

Low-income families, already with less room for risk, would be devastated by market crashes.
Privatization shifts the risk of retirement from the government (guaranteed by law) to individual workers (subject to Wall Street's ups and downs).

Social Security is strong because it is secure — not because it gambles.

🔥 3. "Sunsetting" Federal Programs, Including Social Security

One of the most dangerous proposals floated in Trump’s orbit (and later echoed by politicians like Senator Rick Scott) was to "sunset" all federal programs every five years.

In plain English, that means every five years, Congress would have to re-approve Social Security, Medicare, and other major programs — or they could simply expire.

Imagine having to convince a divided, dysfunctional Congress every five years to keep Social Security alive.
Imagine extremist lawmakers using retirees’ benefits as political leverage to win tax cuts or spending cuts elsewhere.

This isn’t "reform."
It’s a set-up to slowly dismantle Social Security piece by piece, without voters fully realizing what’s happening until it’s too late.

💬 Here’s the Bottom Line:

• Cutting payroll taxes = cutting Social Security funding.

• Privatizing benefits = gambling your retirement on Wall Street.

• Sunsetting programs = turning guaranteed benefits into political pawns.

And let’s be clear:
These attacks aren’t coming because Social Security is failing.
It’s not.

Social Security is fully funded by workers.
It has a $2.8 trillion trust fund and continues to operate efficiently with minimal administrative costs (less than 1% of total expenses).

The real reason for the attacks?
Some politicians want to shift more wealth and power to the private sector — and Social Security, one of the last great public goods in America, stands in the way.

Despite massive public support — with over 80% of Americans across party lines saying they want Social Security protected (Pew Research, 2023) —
the threat remains real.

And if we stay silent, the damage could be permanent.

How We Can Save Social Security

It’s not too late.
But it takes action.

Here’s what needs to happen:

🔹 1. Raise the Payroll Tax Cap

Right now, people only pay Social Security taxes on the first $160,200 they earn.
Millionaires and billionaires stop paying taxes after that, even as they keep earning.

Raising or removing the cap would shore up Social Security’s funding for decades.

🔹 2. Reject Privatization Schemes

Social Security works because it’s guaranteed.
Turning it into a stock market gamble — especially for low-income Americans — is dangerous and reckless.

We must fight any plan that tries to privatize, slice, or sunset it.

🔹 3. Protect Payroll Funding

Payroll taxes are how Social Security stays self-funded.
Politicians who promise "payroll tax cuts" are really cutting your retirement safety net.

Workers must demand honest conversation about protecting funding, not gutting it quietly.

🔹 4. Vote for Candidates Who Pledge to Strengthen Social Security

Elections matter.
And in every election, from Congress to President, voters must ask:
"Will you protect Social Security, or will you dismantle it?"

Support candidates who defend Social Security fully, without backdoor cuts or corporate giveaways.

Final Word: This Fight Is About All of Us

Social Security isn't some outdated relic.
It’s the backbone of American retirement.
It’s a promise we make to ourselves — and to each other.

Low-income families depend on it.
Disabled workers depend on it.
Children who lose a parent depend on it.

And one day, if we’re lucky enough to get older, we will depend on it too.

Protecting Social Security means protecting our future.

Not for some.
For all of us.

The attacks are real.
The consequences are deadly serious.

It’s time to stand up — before it’s too late.

📝 Key Takeaways:

• Social Security is self-funded through your paycheck, not a "handout."

• It provides essential income to seniors, disabled workers, and survivors.

• Low-income families would be hit hardest if Social Security is weakened.

• Trump-era policies put Social Security funding at risk.

• We must act to protect, strengthen, and expand Social Security for the next generation.