'Is That A Question?': Warren Has Tense Exchange With Trump's Social Security Chief Nominee

3 days ago

At today's Senate Finance Committee hearing, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) questioned Frank Bisignano, President Trump's nominee to be Commissioner of Social Security Administration.

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Transcript

00:00Thank you. Senator Warren.

00:03Thank you, Mr. Chairman. So, 90 years ago, Congress passed the Social Security Act,

00:08and the deal was simple. You work hard, you pay into Social Security across all your earnings

00:14years, and then when you retire, you can count on having those Social Security benefits that

00:19you paid for. And now, co-presidents Trump and Musk want to renege on that deal. So,

00:26Doge has taken a sledgehammer to the Social Security Administration, firing staff,

00:31closing field offices, and pulling the plug on phone services. Last week, the acting Commissioner

00:37of Social Security, who is openly working with Elon Musk, actually threatened to shut down the

00:44entire agency. Now, this isn't about efficiency. Elon said the quiet part about his plans right

00:52out loud. Musk said we should, quote, eliminate Social Security. The richest man in the world said

01:00that Social Security for 73 million Americans should be destroyed. Mr. Bisognano, you have

01:07been nominated to be in charge of Social Security, and seniors need to have a right to know if you're

01:12going to protect their benefits. So, let's start simple. Say a 66-year-old man qualifies for Social

01:20Security. Mr. Bisognano, could the Social Security Administration or Elon Musk or Donald Trump

01:29decide to cut her benefits by $5,000 for no reason without a new law passed by Congress?

01:40Is that a question, ma'am? Yeah, that's a question. I don't see that happening. I didn't ask if you

01:44see it happening. Could they, by law, cut those benefits without coming to Congress? No. No. All

01:51right, so let's dig deeper. Suppose this same 65-year-old calls the helpline to apply for Social

01:58Security, but he's told about the new Doge rule, so he has to go online or in person. He can't drive.

02:05He has trouble with the website, so he waits until his niece can get a day off to take him to the

02:10local Social Security office, but Doge closed that office, so they have to drive two hours to get to

02:16the next closest office. When they get there, there are only two people who are staffing a 50-person

02:23line, so he doesn't even make it to the front of the line before the office closes, and he has to

02:28come back. Now, let's assume it takes our fellow three months to straighten this out, and he misses

02:35a total of $5,000 in benefits checks, which, by law, he will never get back. So, Mr. Bisognano,

02:45is that a benefit cut? Well, first of all, Senator... Is that a benefit cut? I'm sorry,

02:55my time is limited here. That's an easy question, yes or no. Is it a benefit cut? I have no intent

03:02to have anything like that happen on my watch, ma'am. I understand that. Is it a benefit cut?

03:09I'm not sure what to call it. It sounds like a

03:12horrible situation. Is the person getting the $5,000 they were legally entitled to?

03:20That was your scenario, and so... So, are they getting $5,000 they were legally entitled to?

03:27I don't know. I mean, you just told me... You don't know? Yeah, I mean... Look, let's be clear.

03:33That you keep $5,000 from them by announcing a policy, it's illegal, but there are backdoor

03:40ways to accomplish the same thing. DOJ is considering slashing up to 50% of the Social

03:47Security Administration's workforce. That means longer lines, more errors, and for everyone who

03:53gives up or who dies before they get their benefits sorted out, those delays and errors

04:00also turn into benefit cuts. Elon Musk is the richest man in the world, so he doesn't need

04:06Social Security. He'd be glad to get rid of it, but only Congress can cut Social Security benefits,

04:14and Elon is trying a backdoor way. So, Mr. Bisognano, if you are confirmed in this job,

04:21will you commit to reversing these cuts so that seniors get the money that the law says

04:28they are entitled to? What I will commit to is that I will run the agency, and I will be in

04:35charge of the agency, and I will look at every item you want me to look at. That's not what I'm

04:41asking you. I'm asking... You just answered the previous questions by saying you would follow

04:47the law. The law is to deliver the benefits that people are legally entitled to. If you don't have

04:55the staff, if you don't answer the phones, if you don't fix the mistakes, people don't get what

05:01they're legally entitled to. So, I want to know, are you willing to commit right now that you will

05:08put enough people back to work so they can do the job of delivering the benefits that Americans

05:15earned? Yes or no? I will commit to have the right staffing to get the job done. To get the job done,

05:21meaning delivering the benefits people are entitled to? Yes. I'm going to hold you to that.

05:27I appreciate that.

'Is That A Question?': Warren Has Tense Exchange With Trump's Social Security Chief Nominee

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