After decades of debate and contention, the status of Social Security remains a hot topic on Capitol Hill. Republicans have spoken out about long-term funding shortfalls for Social Security due to changes in demographics and as the U.S. has hit the debt ceiling.

The Commitment to America plan, which was unveiled by Republicans in September 2022, appeared to provide a vague plan to hold the federal government accountable over Social Security. The debate was sparked by the debt ceiling, which represents the total amount of money the country can borrow to fund programs, such as Social Security and Medicare.

The Republican stance on Social Security has been mixed, to say the least. In November, Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., said Social Security benefits should be slashed, while Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., talked of putting Social Security on the chopping block every five years. Scott recently backpedaled on the comments, as well as comments about overhauling other federal programs, when he felt pressure from both Democrats and Republicans.

Such proposals have been heard loud and clear by Democrats, who suggest that The Commitment to America plan means cutting benefits. President Joe Biden pledged to block any reductions to Social Security in his 2023 State of the Union address. On Feb. 15, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., posted on Twitter: "House Republicans have manufactured a debt ceiling crisis as an excuse to cut Social Security and other critical programs."

Thune's official website reads that "spending on Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid, among other programs, continues to grow at an unsustainable rate." The statement appears to echo the Social Security Trustees' report released in 2021 that the program's reserves will be depleted in 2033.

But Social Security is not going bankrupt, as some have suggested. Also, any deep cuts to Social Security, a program that is a major source of income for the elderly, would have broad implications for economic growth, which is perhaps the main point of the debate.

Roughly 67 million Americans per month will receive a Social Security benefit in 2023 and Social Security benefits will actually see an 8.7% jump this year as the sharpest cost-of-living adjustment since 1981. The average retiree benefit will increase by $146 per month, from $1,681 in 2022 to $1,827 in 2023. The boost will help millions of retirees who need Social Security to pay for basic necessities at a time when inflation has impacted many Americans' personal finances.

But is Social Security really in danger? In late January, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., seemed to put the matter to rest when he said Social Security should be "completely off the table" when it comes to debt ceiling talks, though there are worries that such comments can be just as easily backpedaled as when Scott retreated on his earlier comments.

There is a long history of Republicans seeking to make cuts or eliminate Social Security though they would never come to fruition. It dates back to the 1980s when President Ronald Reagan proposed $35 billion in cuts to Social Security over five years after previously calling it a "welfare program." In 1995-1996, House Speaker Newt Gingrich shut down the federal government for 21 days over government spending, while admitting that a battle over Social Security would be a "brutal, nasty, mean fight" and that those who fought to slash it would "lose."

Employed Americans pay for the Social Security benefits of retirees through the payroll tax in an insurance system that has been highly effective.

By the late 1990s, the number of elderly Americans living in poverty had dropped to 9.2% -- a dramatic reduction from 1959, when more than a third of the elderly lived in poverty.

The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities estimates that over 22 million more Americans would be living in poverty if not for Social Security. Of that figure, almost 1 million of them would be children who rely on a retiree for financial assistance.

Social Security