Entitlements: DOGE goes after Social Security
Elon Musk is pushing false claims about Social Security fraud

Elon Musk is “trying to convince Americans that our Social Security system is overrun by massive fraud,” said Nancy Altman in The Hill. He’s sent his DOGE minions in and come out with a claim that Social Security is paying out funds to millions of beneficiaries over 100 years old. That’s completely false, and in reality “the hardworking civil servants at the Social Security Administration are extremely diligent in tracking the deaths of beneficiaries.” But finding fraud isn’t DOGE’s real aim here. “Musk has made no secret of his disdain for our Social Security system.” It’s the same disdain that a few ultra-wealthy conservatives have expressed for decades. The difference is that now President Trump “is giving Musk the power to steal our earned benefits.”
Musk’s assertions about outrageous Social Security fraud have been almost instantly debunked, said Philip Bump in The Washington Post. Last week, Musk tweeted that DOGE had found records of Social Security recipients who claimed to be as old as 150. “It didn’t take long for other tech guys to point out” that this was obviously “a data error in an old system.” In 2023, the department’s inspector general released a report on the same thing: “There are millions of probably-dead people in the SSA system.” However, only 13 beneficiaries aged 112 or older were being sent checks. “But Musk isn’t very interested in the truth.” He wants to create enough skepticism about Social Security that “all government funding will be rejected as dubious.”
Fraud or not, Social Security is like the Titanic heading toward an iceberg, said Star Parker in RealClearPolitics, and we’ve set it “on automatic pilot.” Our Founding Fathers “would be aghast that today practically every young American is forced to pay into a Social Security that cannot fiscally honor its promised benefits” by the time they retire. “We must free young Americans” from this tragic course. A year ago, 178 House Republicans proposed “modest adjustments to the retirement age” for future Social Security recipients, said Paul Brandus in MarketWatch. “The vast majority of those Republicans were re-elected in November.” Voters no longer see Social Security as untouchable, and “entitlements are on the table.”
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Musk’s bluster “would be less scary if not for other missteps,” said Gabriel Rubin in Reuters. DOGE has already made the government stumble into blunders like mistakenly firing critical nuclear safety workers, who then had to be urgently rehired. Giving Musk the power to “meddle” with Social Security risks similar mistakes that could cut off payments to the program’s 69 million recipients—many of whom rely on the benefit. Even if you want changes to Social Security, brazenly sowing doubt about the program with baseless claims of fraud “is playing with fire.”
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Today's political cartoons - May 4, 2025
Cartoons Sunday's cartoons - deportation, Canadian politeness, and more
-
5 low approval cartoons about poll numbers
Cartoons Artists take on fake pollsters, shared disapproval, and more
-
Deepfakes and impostors: the brave new world of AI jobseeking
In The Spotlight More than 80% of large companies use AI in their hiring process, but increasingly job candidates are getting in on the act
-
Trump's first 100 days: the reshaping of America
Talking Point The second Trump White House is 'less a new administration', and more a 'vengeful monarchy'
-
A 'meltdown' at Hegseth's Pentagon
Feature The Defense Secretary is fighting to keep his job amid leaked Signal chats and staff turmoil
-
Reining in Iran: Talks instead of bombs
Feature Trump edges closer to a nuclear deal with Iran—but is it too similar to former President Barack Obama's pact?
-
Tariffs: The quest to bring back 'manly' jobs
Feature Trump's tariffs promise to revive working-class jobs, but today's labor market has moved on
-
Trump's war on academic freedom: how Harvard fought back
Talking Point Political pressure on institutions compromises academic independence – and risks damaging America's ability to attract international talent
-
Andrew Tate and the manosphere: a short guide
The Explainer It is widely believed that boys and young men are absorbing sexist attitudes online, from influencers in the manosphere
-
Elon Musk has his 'legion.' How will Republicans encourage other Americans to have babies?
Today's Big Question The pronatalist movement finds itself in power
-
Musk vows DOGE pullback as Tesla profits plunge
Speed Read The Tesla SEO says he will soon step back from government matters to devote more time to the company