Republicans want to slash a billion dollars out of Social Security’s administrative budget? Seriously? Whatever you happen to think of Social Security as a program, even conservatives have always acknowledged that it’s a very efficient bit of bureaucracy with extremely low administrative costs. But not anymore, I guess:
Democrats warn this will lead to furloughs and other service interruptions that could delay checks and prevent new retirees from enrolling….In a statement, Rep. Xavier Becerra (D-CA), who chairs the Social Security subcommittee under Levin, says, “[T]his Republican plan would close down Social Security offices for an entire month this year. That means half a million American seniors, disabled workers and surviving family members–working people who have earned their Social Security benefits–will find themselves placed into a backlog of unprocessed claims. It means phones going unanswered, claims going unprocessed and a ripple effect of backlogged cases that will continue well beyond this year.”
Republicans are really skating on thin ice here. If they don’t rein in their famous freshman class soon, they’re going to end up pretty quickly as the most hated party in American political history.
