Commerce Department Secretary Howard Lutnick claimed in an interview last week that beneficiaries of Social Security payments wouldn’t complain if they didn’t receive their checks this month — and that anyone who did speak up would be exposing themselves as a “fraudster.”
The comments from Lutnick — one of the many billionaires in the Trump administration — expose how out of touch he is with the Americans who rely solely on Social Security payments to fund their retirements.
Lutnick made the remarks during an appearance on the “All-In” podcast on Thursday, saying that his mother-in-law would not complain if the Social Security Administration (SSA) suddenly stopped making payments.
“She’d think something got messed up, and she’ll get it next month,” Lutnick said about his mother-in-law, who lives in a townhouse with him and his wife on the Upper East Side of Manhattan.
Lutnick then disparaged anyone who would complain about delays. “A fraudster always makes the loudest noise, screaming, yelling and complaining,” he said.
Anybody who’s been in the payment system and the processes, who knows the easiest way to find the fraudster is to stop payments and listen, because whoever screams is the one stealing. Because my mother-in-law’s not calling, come on, your mother, 80-year-olds, 90-year-olds, they trust the government.
Data on Social Security recipients indicates that Lutnick’s assertions are wrong — many retirees likely would file complaints over a payment delay, as many rely on those payments to survive.
Nearly 3 in 10 Baby Boomers and nearly a quarter of individuals from the Silent Generation (the generation preceding boomers), live paycheck-to-paycheck, one study found. Another report, published by the National Institute on Retirement Security in 2020, found that 40 percent of older Americans rely solely on Social Security payments as their primary income source.
Lutnick’s comments come as the SSA recently announced that, starting next week, phone call verifications would no longer be an option for people seeking to enroll in Social Security or make changes to their enrollment. Instead, individuals will have to alter or apply for their benefits online or in person at local offices.
Online options aren’t always preferable to retirees, as many are skeptical about sending personal information over the internet. And meeting in person poses its own difficulties — especially with potential cuts and firings looming within the SSA.
The new standards “will substantially delay [beneficiaries’] access to their earned benefits,” said Kathleen Romig, director of Social Security and disability policy at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.
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