(C) Common Dreams
This story was originally published by Common Dreams and is unaltered.
. . . . . . . . . .
What Kamala Harris Has Said About Social Security [1]
['Aliss Higham', 'Colin H. Kahl', "Michael O'Hanlon", 'Michael Gfoeller', 'David H. Rundell']
Date: 2024-07-22 06:02:03-04:00
Now that President Joe Biden has announced he will not seek a second term following weeks of pressure from Democrats, all eyes are on Vice President Kamala Harris as she announces her intention to run for the White House this November, and a key issue is her position on Social Security.
While the clock ticks down to the election, time is also running out to fix the Social Security Administration's (SSA) funding cliff. If new funding plans to shore up the trust funds that help finance benefits for tens of millions of Americans do not materialize under a future government, it could see benefits immediately cut by around a fifth in 2035, according to the government agency's most recent projections.
Vice President Kamala Harris on May 1, 2024, in Jacksonville, Florida. She has been endorsed by President Joe Biden to run as the Democratic nominee for 2024. Vice President Kamala Harris on May 1, 2024, in Jacksonville, Florida. She has been endorsed by President Joe Biden to run as the Democratic nominee for 2024. GETTY
What Has Harris Said about Social Security?
Specific policy points pertaining to a Harris 2024 campaign are not currently available, given that Harris only announced her intention to run for the White House on Sunday evening. However, the current second-in-command has unsurprisingly taken the same line as Biden throughout the election campaign so far.
Under the leadership of Biden, Harris has endorsed the current administration's plans for funding the SSA, including enacting additional taxes on wealthy individuals with incomes of more than $400,000 to help extend the SSA's solvency. Currently, up to $168,600 in earnings are subject to Social Security payroll taxes.
In a previous fact sheet issued by the White House, the administration said it is opposed to "any proposal to cut benefits, as well as proposals to privatize Social Security"—something Harris is likely to stick to during a presidential campaign, given that benefit cuts would be extremely unpopular with the electorate.
Newsweek contacted the White House for comment via email outside of normal working hours.
For 2025, the Biden-Harris administration also said it would "increase SSA's funding by 9 percent from the 2023 enacted level" with the aim of improving "customer service at SSA's field offices, State disability determination services, and teleservice centers for retirees, and for individuals with disabilities, and their families."
Harris has also followed Biden's lead in attacking Republican nominee Donald Trump. "President @JoeBiden and I will protect Social Security. Donald Trump will not. The contrast is clear," she said on X, formerly Twitter, earlier this year.
President @JoeBiden and I will protect Social Security.
Donald Trump will not.
The contrast is clear.
https://t.co/zuVxMAJ6PI — Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) June 18, 2024
Following Trump's speech at the Republican National Convention last week, Harris again took to X to say Trump intends to slash Social Security benefits, something he has denied in recent months.
"Last night, we heard claims that Donald Trump is fighting for our seniors," she wrote. "How can you claim to fight for seniors when you intend to cut Social Security and Medicare, which is a lifeline for so many of our seniors?"
According to a report by CNBC, Harris also backed the Social Security Expansion Act during her time as a California senator, which if enacted would include increasing cost-of-living adjustments, increasing benefits by up to $2,400 a year for all beneficiaries, and subject all income above $250,000 to the Social Security payroll tax.
[END]
---
[1] Url:
https://www.newsweek.com/kamala-harris-social-security-position-1928274
Published and (C) by Common Dreams
Content appears here under this condition or license: Creative Commons CC BY-NC-ND 3.0..
via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds:
gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/commondreams/
