Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick pummeled over Social Security 'fraudster' comments

• Howard Lutnick is facing backlash for dismissing concerns over missed Social Security checks.
• A former Social Security commissioner called his comments "cavalier disregard" and "utter ignorance."
• Lutnick's comments are a focal point at rallies that protest the shuttering of SSA field offices.

Howard Lutnick, the billionaire Secretary of Commerce, is being pummeled online over his comments on Thursday that his 94-year-old mother-in-law would not complain about a missed Social Security check and that someone who would is a "fraudster."

"Let's say Social Security didn't send out their checks this month — my mother-in-law, who's 94, she wouldn't call and complain," Lutnick told All-In Podcast host Chamath Palihapitiya. "A fraudster always makes the loudest noise, screaming, yelling, and complaining."

Based on a fact sheet published by the Social Security Administration, more than 7 million Americans 65 and older receive at least 90% of their income from benefits checks.

Social Security employees have been warning that the Trump administration's plan to cut 7,000 SSA staff will result in delayed benefit checks and could extend the wait time by two to three times.

According to the Bloomberg Billionaire Index, Lutnick's net worth was at least $2.2 billion as of February 2025.

Below are reactions to Lutnick's comments from prominent business leaders, commentators, and political leaders. Howard Lutnick and the Department of Commerce did not respond to requests for comments.

Mark Cuban

In a post on Bluesky, Cuban reposted a screenshot of a news article about Lutnick's comments on missed Social Security checks and asked, "Has Howard Lutnick done anything of value as Commerce Secretary?"

The reality show billionaire, who identifies as an independent in politics, congratulated Trump for winning the election in November and, in a 2016 interview with Rolling Stone, called his association with the President a "love-hate relationship."

Martin O'Malley, former Maryland Governor and SSA Commissioner

"Social Security is a lifeline to millions of Americans," O'Malley said Friday night on The Rachel Maddow Show. "40% of seniors living alone depend entirely on Social Security to keep themselves out of poverty."

"The cavalier disregard, utter ignorance of how so many Americans live on a day-to-day basis, is stunning, is appalling, and is a cruel-heartedness at the center of our government that we've never seen before," he added.

Randi Weingarten, President of the American Federation of Teachers

At the Hands Off Social Security rally in White Plains, New York, where the Trump administration is set to shutter a Social Security office, Weingarten, president of the second largest teacher's labor union, began her speech by vowing that "the people will win" over Elon Musk and Lutnick.

"We didn't vote for Elon Musk to call Social Security a Ponzi scheme," she said. "We didn't vote for Howard Lutnick to say, 'Oh don't worry, no elderly people, including my mother, would care if they don't get their checks from Social Security.'"

Jim Clyburn, Congressman

In a post on X, Clyburn, representative of South Carolina's 6th congressional district, wrote that "the billionaires in the Trump administration have no idea what it's like to rely on Social Security earned through a lifetime of hard, honest work."

The post also features a now-viral clip of Lutnick's comments on the All-In Podcast, where show hosts Chamath Palihapitiya and David Friedberg did not directly dispute him on the spot.

Rachel Maddow

The longtime MSNBC host played a video of Lutnick's Social Security comments on the All-In Podcast, and said it "is such a political disaster" she almost had to close her eyes because she "can't bear to watch it."

"How does that comport with what you understand of the reality of getting a Social Security check, and who in your life you know gets a Social Security check?" she asked before playing Lutnick's clip for the second time.

According to TV Insider, The Rachel Maddow Show averaged more than 1.7 million total viewers in primetime in January and has remained one of the most popular shows on MSNBC for years.

Chuck Schumer, Senate Minority Leader

Schumer reposted Lutnick's now infamous clip from the All-In Podcast on X and called the Secretary of Commerce "an out-of-touch billionaire" who is "clueless or heartless."

"Howard Lutnick does not understand what a missed Social Security check means to a senior on a fixed income," he added.

Schumer has recently faced criticism from Democrats like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez that he isn't doing enough to fight Republican policies over his decision to vote for the House GOP funding bill to avert a government shutdown.

Ben Collins, CEO of The Onion

Collins, the CEO of the satirical news website, posted on Bluesky a hypothetical response from Lutnick to a person in need, in contrast to how he hypothetically would react to an AI defense contractor asking $10 billion.

"80-year-old, starving to death: money? for food please?

lutnick: avast, grifter!

defense contractor who met Peter Thiel once and makes AI bazookas that shoot stray dogs on sight: I need $10 billion... for reasons

lutnick: say less sir, yes sir, right this way sir"