Trump DOGE cuts leave Social Security agency at 60-year staffing low

It’s been a terrible year for Social Security.

After President Donald Trump appointed Elon Musk and DOGE to the Social Security Administration, the agency lost more staff in a shorter period of time than ever before in its 90-year history. Fortunately, public outcry and pushback from congressional Democrats saved Social Security from a 50% cut in staffing and the closure of numerous field offices that Trump and his administration announced in March. So, somehow, these dedicated employees who remained at the Social Security Administration still managed to keep the agency running without missing a single monthly benefit payment.

There aren’t many public or private insurance companies in the world that can claim to have never missed a monthly benefit payment in 90 years.

This is good news for 71 million Americans; Many of them depend on the benefits they earn each month as a lifeline. But we’re not out of the woods yet. The agency was gutted. Great damage has been done to customer service and the agency’s ability to process claims.

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Just as many are demanding that Trump’s deep cuts to healthcare be brought back, Trump’s deep cuts to Social Security also need to be brought back, as the two are inextricably linked. Sixty-four million Medicare recipients will see a reduction in their Social Security benefits in 2026 due to Trump’s Medicare price increases that will reduce the Social Security cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) and make life more expensive for seniors. This is the largest erosion of the Social Security COLA in nearly a decade and the first time Medicare premiums have exceeded $200 a month.

With the Social Security Administration’s staffing falling to its lowest level in 60 years and baby boomers pushing the number of active beneficiaries to an all-time high, the agency is struggling badly, and the American people are paying the price. Wait times to reach a person in the field office or to speak to a person on the 1-800 line have become longer.

While the Trump administration claims things have never been better, millions of Americans are having a very different experience. In fact, more people are dying today while waiting in line for their first disability determination than at any time since President Dwight Eisenhower signed the disability portion of the Act into law in 1956. Even more recently, Trump and DOGE compromised the personal data of 300 million Americans from the Social Security Administration. Americans have been deprived of customer service and peace of mind.

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Conditions became so bad that Social Security Affairs Director Nancy Altman called for the resignation of Social Security Commissioner Frank Bisignano. This is a clear example of experts’ deep concern about the damage done to the agency.

None of this had to happen. This was made to happen. As a candidate, Trump promised throughout the campaign to protect Social Security. Instead, he destroyed the program’s customer service, destroyed the program’s functions with a chainsaw, and damaged the program’s reputation with false claims of waste, fraud, and abuse.

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In a time of great political division, Social Security remains the most strongly supported program in America. Actually, 80% of Americans They worry about whether Social Security will be available when they retire, and they don’t want it to be strengthened, improved, broken up, privatized, or eliminated.

This is a moment of democracy. Social Security should be a bipartisan issue. All lawmakers—Republicans, Democrats, and Independents—need to come together and deliver on the promise of a secure retirement after a lifetime of hard work.