Social Security

House Democrats Introduce Bill to Expand Social Security

By Michael Rainey

Backed by more than 200 House Democrats, Reps. John Larson (D-CT), Conor Lamb (D-PA) and Jahana Hayes (D-CT) introduced a bill Wednesday that would increase Social Security benefits. The bill would...
‘Greatest Threat’ to the US? Two Top Democratic Economists Aren’t So Worried About the Debt

By Michael Rainey

Starbucks founder Howard Schultz told “60 Minutes” Sunday that he is considering a run for president in 2020, possibly as a “centrist independent,” and one of his top issues is the growing national...
CBO Offers 121 Ways to Shrink the Deficit

By The Fiscal Times Staff

The Congressional Budget Office has released a 326-page guide that describes dozens of ways the federal government could reduce its large and growing budget deficit. The 121 policy options included...
Moody’s Warns of Declining US Fiscal Strength

By The Fiscal Times Staff

Trump’s tax cuts combined with a slowing economy will diminish the United States’ “fiscal strength” over the next 10 years, Moody’s Investor Service said Wednesday. The gradual decline could pressure...
3 Ideas for Fixing Social Security

By Yuval Rosenberg

Social Security’s trustees reported earlier this year that the program will spend more than it collects in 2018 , requiring it to tap into its $2.9 trillion trust fund to cover benefit payments. It’s...

Transfer Payments Hit $3 Trillion Annual Pace

By The Fiscal Times Staff

Total government transfers reached $3 trillion on an annualized basis for the first time in September, according to data released by the Bureau of Economic Analysis Monday. Transfer payments include...
Democrats Take Aim at Republicans on Entitlement Cuts

By Michael Rainey

Democrats have a new sledgehammer of a study they can use in trying to link Republican tax cuts and proposed cuts to Medicare, Social Security and other social welfare programs. A report released...
McConnell: Entitlement Cuts Probably Won’t Happen Under Trump

By Yuval Rosenberg

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) unleashed a storm of Democratic criticism earlier this week by telling Bloomberg News that rising deficits and debt are driven by Social Security,...
Mitch McConnell on Rising Deficit: ‘It’s Not a Republican Problem'

By Yuval Rosenberg

The quotes: “It’s disappointing, but it’s not a Republican problem. It’s a bipartisan problem: unwillingness to address the real drivers of the debt by doing anything to adjust those programs to the...
A Fiscal Hawk’s New Plan to ‘Avert a Debt Crisis’

By Yuval Rosenberg

The national debt rose by more than $1 trillion in fiscal 2018, and yet lawmakers have evinced little concern about it ahead of this year’s elections, instead pushing tax cuts and spending increases...

US Interest Costs Will Match Social Security Spending by 2048, CBO Says

By Yuval Rosenberg

The Congressional Budget Office on Tuesday confirmed what we already knew: The U.S. faces a rising tide of red ink, with the national debt as a share of the economy projected to nearly double over...
Why the Social Security Disability Fund Is Looking Healthier

By Michael Rainey

The Social Security trustees’ report released earlier this month estimated that the Federal Disability Insurance Trust Funds will run out of reserves in 2032, four years later than expected. The...
Do Deficit Hawks Have a Snowball’s Chance in Hell in Today’s Politics?

By Michael Rainey

When Starbucks founder and executive chairman Howard Schultz announced his retirement earlier this week, he set off a round of speculation about a possible presidential run in 2020. Schultz has never...
Medicare Finances Worsen, Social Security Will Tap Reserves for First Time in 36 Years

By Yuval Rosenberg

Medicare’s financial problems worsened last year while Social Security still faces a significant long-term financial crunch — and will need to tap into its reserves for the first time in 36 years,...
Why More Retirees Are Waiting to Claim Social Security

By Michael Rainey

Retirees are waiting longer to claim their Social Security benefits, reports Mark Miller of Reuters, with the number of early claimants dropping dramatically in recent years: “As recently as 2004,...