Dem
47
GOP
53
Democrats are leaderless, but they don't have to be. They have a couple of ex-presidents laying around who could lead the troops. This week, one of them finally spoke out, albeit gingerly. On Tuesday, Joe Biden gave a speech in Chicago. He was focused on Social Security. He said: "In fewer than 100 days, this administration has caused so much damage and destruction. It's breathtaking, They've taken a hatchet to the Social Security Administration." He didn't mention who "they" are. Donald Trump? Elon Musk? The deep state? Elves?
Biden sees the Social Security program as a sacred promise. People pay the FICA tax their whole working lives and the government promises to give them a pension in their old age. He said the current administration is a threat to that sacred promise. He also used a remark from former SSA Commissioner Martin O'Malley: "They want to wreck it so they can rob it." That was an allusion to the oft-stated Republican hope of privatizing Social Security, requiring all workers to open a special kind of investment account to which they and their employers contribute and which the employees could not touch until retirement. This would generate billions of dollars in revenue for the banks for managing the accounts and it would probably drive stock prices up to unheard-of levels.
The SSA is already rushing cuts to phone service. Also, some things that previously could be done by phone will now have to be done online or in person, despite many SSA offices being eliminated. This may make it nearly impossible for people with disabilities or people who are not computer savvy and live far from an SSA office from signing up, changing how they receive their benefits, and other things. Acting Commissioner Leland Dudek said that changes that normally take 2 years are being done in 2 weeks. This will certainly lead to bugs. Furthermore, many people will not understand the new rules, opening up great business opportunities for scammers who will offer naive people "help."
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) backed Biden up. He said: "The unprecedented assault on Social Security is an all-hands-on-deck moment that requires all of us to show up, stand up and speak up, which is why President Biden's voice in this fight is going to be so incredibly important." Other Democrats echoed similar things. Social Security is a good topic for Biden to speak about since: (1) it is simple to understand, (2) it is popular, and (3) it is relevant to people Biden's age. The speech was old-fashioned Biden folksy, including stories about his growing up in Scranton. He also talked about how his "folks" (parents) had it rough and struggled to make ends meet.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt responded to Biden's speech: "I'm shocked that he is speaking at nighttime. I thought his bedtime was much earlier than his speech tonight." It is not clear if she thought she was being asked about the last president, or the current one.
Biden is elderly and well past his prime. But the Democrats have another ex-president, Barack Obama, who is not past his prime and is still very popular. Obama could go around the country holding rallies and attacking Trump on a wide variety of topics. He is still a very powerful speaker and could galvanize the opposition. But so far he hasn't been doing this. He has the potential of being the face of the Democratic Party in a way that minority leaders Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Hakeem Jeffries are not. (V)