Is Trump really proposing to cut Medicare?

Republicans and Democrats keep switching sides on this debate. Here's what you need to know.

President Trump.
(Image credit: Illustrated | SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images), FreeSoulProduction/iStock)

President Trump was supposed to be different kind of Republican: Back in 2015, he promised to "save Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security without cuts."

Fast forward to this week, when Trump's new national budget proposal was released. Democratic presidential contenders like Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), and Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) are all pouncing on the president for supposedly including $845 billion in cuts to Medicare in his budget's 10-year window. Meanwhile, Trump's budget director is firing back that it isn't true.

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Jeff Spross

Jeff Spross was the economics and business correspondent at TheWeek.com. He was previously a reporter at ThinkProgress.