Today, Senator Gillibrand joined with Rep. Dan Goldman, unions, and seniors at a rally to protect Social Security from the Trump administration and to call on the administration to immediately halt its efforts to cut agency staff and the critical services Social Security provides. New York City is home to one of the largest senior populations living in poverty nationwide, and cuts to agency services or personnel will decimate the Social Security system and deny New Yorkers their hard-earned benefits.
“Social Security is a necessary lifeline that ensures Americans have access to benefits they rightfully deserve,” said Senator Gillibrand. “The Trump administration is trying to steamroll Social Security with its reckless efforts to undermine this vital program. Instead of tearing Social Security down, President Trump should be reaching across the aisle to strengthen it for future generations. Millions of New Yorkers will be harmed if President Trump gets his way, and I will fight to ensure Social Security benefits remain secure and accessible.”
“Social Security is not a handout, it’s an earned benefit that New Yorkers have paid into their entire lives to retire with dignity,” said Congressman Dan Goldman. “Donald Trump and the Republican Party are hell-bent on tearing it down. They’re closing field offices, slashing staff, and forcing seniors to travel hours just to complete routine paperwork. Trump, Elon Musk, and their DOGE hatchet men are deliberately erecting roadblocks between seniors and the benefits they’ve been promised. While this president sabotages the programs our communities rely on, I’m calling on New York Republicans to stop cowering and stand up to this assault.”
“Millions of Americans, including me, have been paying into Social Security our whole working lives. This is an earned benefit, not just something handed to us. Closing offices like the Hearing Office in White Plains will force seniors and people with disabilities to travel much longer distances to fight for their benefits. This amounts to a cut in benefits and we will do all we can to prevent it from happening,” said Congressman George Latimer.
“Wait times are longer, social security recipients are anxious, and cuts to Social Security Administration staff and giving DOGE access to confidential personal data is wrong-headed,” said Congressman Tom Suozzi. “We must protect Social Security. Undermining Social Security weakens the fragile foundation of the American middle class.”
“Many of our members dedicated their lives to public service with the promise that social security would be there when they reached retirement age, and now we are seeing that promise under attack by this administration,” said Henry Garrido, Executive Director of District Council 37 AFSCME, AFL-CIO. “The rising costs of housing, food and healthcare are already threatening to leave our retirees and seniors financially devastated, and these planned cuts to social security services must stop immediately.”
The Social Security Administration (SSA) has already announced plans to cut 7,000 staff, despite the fact that SSA staffing is already at a 50-year low and there are historically long case backlogs. Seniors across the nation have been reporting hours-long wait times, SSA website crashes, and an inability to reach anyone at the Social Security office for help. The so-called “Department of Government Efficiency” is heightening fear among seniors that proposed cuts to SSA will amount to a cut in benefits. With continuous website crashes and some individuals not even being able to log in to their portal, DOGE has decided that now is the right time to terminate SSA employees who are in charge of IT for their website. DOGE is simultaneously planning to shutter Social Security Administration offices across the country, including two in New York. DOGE’s continued attempts to gut this agency at a time of heightened food and energy prices will cause anxiety and confusion amongst beneficiaries, some of whom rely completely on their Social Security benefits to make ends meet.
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