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On Monday night’s episode of The Late Show, Stephen Colbert interviewed former White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain. During their conversation, they discussed President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address from earlier this week.
In an effort to make Biden look like a political genius, Colbert asked Klain if they had planned for the moment when the President falsely accused Republicans of wanting to cut Social Security and Medicaid. Klain responded that they had planned for it and that it was Biden’s best impression of Harry Truman. The problem with this narrative is that it is not true.
Klain said, “Look, if you don’t want to be accused of trying to cut Social Security and Medicare maybe you shouldn’t try to cut Social Security and Medicare. Okay, and so, you know, look, Harry Truman, you know, was called, ‘Give ’em hell, Harry’ and Harry Truman once famously said ‘I don’t give them hell. I just tell them the truth about them and it feels like hell’ and that’s what that moment felt like at the State of the Union.”
What Did Biden Say?
During his speech on Wednesday, Biden said “We can’t turn back now—and yet, too many Republicans in Congress want to return to the same failed economic theories that got us into this mess in the first place: They want to gut Social Security and Medicaid while giving more tax breaks to corporations already making record profits.” This statement is patently false. Not only do Republicans not want to cut Social Security and Medicaid, but many have spoken out against cutting those benefits for seniors.
The Reality Of Republican Policy
The reality is that the Republican Party does not want to cut Social Security or Medicare. In fact, many prominent Republicans have proposed legislation aimed at protecting or even increasing these benefits for seniors.
For instance, last year Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley proposed legislation that would increase Social Security benefits for about 8 million recipients by up to $1,400 per year. His plan was supported by a number of prominent GOP Senators as well as some Democrats in Congress.
Furthermore, a recent survey conducted by YouGov/The Economist found that 88% of Republican voters oppose cutting Social Security or Medicare benefits; only 7% support cuts to either program. These numbers demonstrate that most Americans—including most Republicans—do not support cutting these programs and instead favor policies that protect them or even enhance their benefits.
