Some Democrats are squaring off with President Donald Trump’s administration over one of the most potent political issues in the country ahead of this year’s midterm elections: Social Security.The social safety net program that financially supports more than 70 million people — mostly retirees but also those with disabilities — was at the center of a critical letter some Senate Democrats sent to Social Security Commissioner Frank Bisignano. The New Deal-era program carries significant weight with voters, millions of whom rely on it, making talk of cutting benefits unpopular. Adding to the potency of the issue is the program’s looming funding shortfall. Democrats and Republicans are competing this November for control of the narrowly divided House, with the Senate increasingly in play, injecting an incentive for both sides to press their advantages.
What’s the Democrats’ letter to Commissioner Bisignano about?Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Ron Wyden of Oregon, along with Democratic colleagues, said in a letter to Bisignano this week that he used an “unsolicited” electronic message to Social Security recipients to push partisan and misleading statements about benefits stemming from the Republican president’s signature legislation, his massive tax and spending cuts law.
