Trump seeks to weaken US education, retirement security programs

President Trump’s nightmarish crusade to decimate vital federal functions is a fulfillment of conservative activist Grover Norquist’s dream to destroy government programs in stages. Norquist famously stated, “My goal is to cut government in half in twenty-five years, to get it down in size so we can drown it in a bathtub.” These days, Norquist must be jumping with joy.

Trump can’t eliminate federal programs outright without legal authority, even with a Congress unwilling to challenge him, because of pesky federal judges. And he can’t kill Social Security without incurring voter wrath. So instead, he undermines these vital programs not with an immediate execution but with a death of a thousand cuts.

Even he doesn’t have the audacity or the authority to kill programs outright. But he is weakening the foundation that will eventually lead to the collapse of educational and retirement security programs that have served millions of retirees and children for so many years. 

The lights are still on at the U.S. Department of Education, but our children have been left in the dark. Last week, Trump announced plans to gut the agency. He has stripped it down, even though most Americans don’t want it eliminated. He has laid off half of its workforce and ended many important research projects at the department charged with helping local school districts educate our children. 

I have an axe to grind in Trump’s plot to rob school children of their bright futures. At risk of dating myself, my first job in Washington, D.C. was as a budget analyst in the U.S. Office of Education when it was still part of the Department of Health, Education and Welfare. I observed firsthand the valiant efforts of career employees to make sure schoolchildren were served well with cost-effective programs. Many of them had been teachers themselves. My daughter is a public high school teacher who works far beyond the call of duty to prepare her students for success.

Americans appreciate the valiant efforts of these hardworking professionals even if Trump and Musk don’t. A national survey conducted by Ipsos for Reuters indicated that two in three Americans opposed the elimination of the department.  

There will be a massive fight to save the department. One of the leaders in that fight, American Federation of Teachers president Randi Weingarten, told me on my podcast that the department's decimation would have a catastrophic impact on the lives of millions of children.

The same pattern holds for Social Security. Even Trump won’t kill it in the bright light of day. Instead, he has operated like a thief in the night. New Trump directives won't allow beneficiaries to verify their identity over the phone, instead making them do it in person if they can't do it online. And as if to make that even harder, the administration is closing 47 Social Security Administration offices around the country despite protests from moderate Republicans like Rep. like Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.).

What a devastating, diabolically clever and morally repugnant gut punch to the seniors who have spent their entire work lives paying into the program that would protect them in their old age.

Trump’s courtiers just can’t stop themselves from showing contempt for the program that has worked so well and served so many people for such a long time. On his site X, Musk shared a post described those who rely on federal benefits as members of the “Parasite Class.” He has also described the lifesaving program as a “Ponzi scheme.” This from a guy who enjoys $38 billion in government contracts for Space X and Tesla. 

Then, there’s Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnik, who has a side gig as a Tesla salesman for Musk. He rejected the idea that Social Security beneficiaries would suffer if they didn’t get their monthly payment. He said, “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. She just wouldn’t. She’ll think that something got messed up and she’ll get it next month.” 

Sadly, many seniors depend on the monthly check to come on time to pay for food and don’t have the luxury of a wealthy son-in-law who can bail them out when the bills come. According to the Social Security Administration, 7 million Americans receive 90 percent of their income from Social Security.

Why do MAGAs have so much hated for such a great program? Because Social Security is the avatar of Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s New Deal and a living demonstration of how well government can ably serve the needs of the public. Republicans fought tooth and nail to stop the creation of the retirement security system and they won’t rest until they succeed in killing the program and the hopes and dreams of our elders to secure their futures after paying into Social Security for decades. 

Trump and Musk have tied vulnerable House Republicans to the track over the third rail of American politics, and the Democratic train is bearing down fast. Republicans don’t have much time left to free themselves from Trump and Musk and get right with their angry constituents. 

Brad Bannon is a national Democratic strategist and CEO of Bannon Communications Research which polls for Democrats, labor unions and progressive issue groups. He hosts the popular progressive podcast on power, politics and policy, Deadline D.C. with Brad Bannon.