- Biden slams Trump’s employees to lay off employees at the Social Security Bureau.
- The former president reenters political competition after leaving office.
- Some Democrats have doubts about Biden’s reappearance.
Former Democratic President Joe Biden delivered his first major speech on Tuesday, defending the Social Security Agency (SSA), the Trump administration laid off staff at the agency and shut down some offices.
Biden’s speech on Chicago’s advocates on disabled people marks a major reappearance of the political landscape in the United States. President Donald Trump’s administration efficiency division, run by tech billionaire Elon Musk, is cutting significantly to the federal workforce.
Biden said the Trump administration has “taken the axe” to the agency.
“This new government has caused great damage and destruction,” he said, calling social security “more than just a government plan.”
“This is a sacred promise we make as a nation. We know how important social security is to people’s lives.”
SSA pays $1.4 trillion in benefits to 73 million elderly and Americans with disabilities every year. Trump repeatedly promised during the election not to touch on social security benefits.
Members of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) team have been within the agency since February, with leaders promising to lay off at least 7,000 employees and shutter offices, raising concerns about longer lines, longer waiting times and disruptions to interests.
The federal judge said in March that the SSA may have violated Musk’s aides’ “unrestricted access” to data from millions of Americans in the agency’s network and ordered a temporary cessation of record sharing. The case continues.
“President Trump is absolutely sure to protect social security benefits for law-abiding, tax-abiding U.S. citizens and older people who have paid this program. He will always protect the program,” Trump’s press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters before Biden’s speech.
There have been many layoffs or resignations within the agency’s IT department, and Biden mentioned that the agency’s computer system crashes have recently increased.
“People can’t log in to their accounts,” Biden said. “Who do they think they are?” he said of the Trump administration.
Some Democrats have doubts about Biden’s speech, saying it would be better for him not to re-enter political competition.
Democratic strategist Karen Finney said many Democrats feared Biden’s appearance would distract Trump from triggering a trade war with China and imposing tariffs on other countries.
“From Trump’s policy perspective, we’re finally starting to see cracks in the armor,” Finney said. “You don’t want to be a lightning rod that distracts Trump. This may make it easier for Trump to change the theme to Biden.”
Biden, 82, won reelection in July last year after underperforming his debate with Trump. His vice president, Kamala Harris, then lost the November election.
Biden left the office in January, one of the president’s approved ratings after World War II, accounting for 38%, and has been in four years after high inflation and questions about his mental acumen, according to a Reuters/ipsos poll. Many Democrats accused him of victory.
Presidential historian Timothy Naftali said Biden wants to speak out because of his age.
“I know why some Democrats want Biden to disappear,” Naftali said. “But a very important part of the Democratic Base is still seniors in social security, and Joe Biden has been their champion.”
