#social security corruption

[loislane-ana]

NEWS! ~~~ doge, leavitt, tariffs, social security corruption, associated press, blue origin, taxes, atlanta e-bikes, close plane call in chicago, refugees, budget, ice, crime fighting drones, gas prices, fdr flood gates, hoboken path, nyc, snl

[jangillman]

It is unbelievable to think that ANY patriotic American would ever consider voting Democrat when the truth and depth of their corruption is being revealed to the World! Leftist brainrot personified

[reality-detective]

It’s ALL a BIG scam! 🤔

[in4newz]

U.S. FOOTS 50% OF UKRAINE'S MILITARY BILL WHILE EUROPE SCRAMBLES TO FILL GAP

U.S. has provided a whopping $69 billion in military aid to Ukraine since 2022, dwarfing Germany's $13.6B and UK's $10.8B contributions.

Trump's recent pause on military support has European leaders suddenly discovering their checkbooks.

EU Commission President von der Leyen called it a "watershed moment."

European nations would need to double their current $53.8B collective contribution to match what America has supplied. Meanwhile, Hungary sits out the solidarity party, refusing to sign the joint statement.

[rmonti55]

LEAVE MY FUCKING MEDICARE AND MY SOCIAL SECURITY ALONE YOU GOD DAMN REPULSIVE-CAN BRAINWORM INFESTED MORONS!!!!

[my-midlife-crisis]

I'm not done sharing this

and I'm not done showing Elon Musk buying votes either

just a reminder...

[fumifooms]

Monsters and Ghosts

Monsters & Ghosts, the monstrous siblings

The Toudens Dungeon Meshi Ryoko Kui

Red song lyrics (both fonts & shades): Animal by The Living Tombstone // Black background song lyrics: This is Home by Cavetown // The two dialogue bubbles, flighted birds & swallowing: Shut Hell by Yu Ito // Blue quote: Susan Ee // White background quote: Numbers 13:32, the Bible // “Burning shadows of human hands” song lyrics: Uncanny by GHOST // Brown-gold song lyrics: My Ordinary Life by The Living Tombstone // Orange quote: Mira Grant Last quote below: Stephen King // Last song lyrics below: Monster from Adventure Time.

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

Kevin Kal Kallaugher :: @kaltoons :: This cartoon from last November said it all.

* * * *

A wild week comes to a close.

June 7, 2025

Robert B. Hubbell

Jun 06, 2025

[Reminder: I will hold a Substack livestream on Saturday at 9:00 am PT / Noon ET. Open to everyone on the Substack App on your phone or tablet.]

It was a wild week, so I'll do my best to bring some perspective to the chaotic news cycle.

In a single sentence, here it is: Things are going horribly for Trump and the GOP, so Trump is attempting to divert attention from their inability to govern by staging made-for-TV melodramas.

The converse is also true: Democrats stayed the course, attacking the grotesque unfairness of the reconciliation bill and generally behaving like a pro-democracy party with a stake in America’s future.

Much of the Sturm und Drang that dominated the airwaves this week was smoke without fire, buck without bang, and noise without signal. In short, about 80% of the news cycle was “a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.”

With due respect to The Bard, he could not have reasonably anticipated that there would be two idiots simultaneously “full of sound and fury,” so he gets a pass on the otherwise excellent line from Macbeth.

It is important to separate the telenovela aspects of the political news from those aspects that imperil the lives and safety of all Americans.

But let’s start by acknowledging that the US media, as usual, gave only passing coverage to D-Day protests by veterans across the nation. I am opening the Saturday Comment section so that readers who attended rallies and protests on June 6 can share their experiences with others. But the UK-based Guardian did include front page coverage: Veterans protest against Trump cuts at DC rally: ‘Promises made to us have come under attack’.

ICE continues militarized raids

ICE and Homeland Security continued to use military tactics in immigration raids. On Friday, the raids were concentrated in Los Angeles and San Diego. In Los Angeles, crowds surrounded military-style ICE and Homeland Security agents as they swept through a clothing manufacturing plant. Federal agents then used flash-bang grenades to push back the crowds. See KABC 7, Widespread ICE raids: Protesters clash with federal agents in Los Angeles after immigration ops.

If you can, watch the entire video linked above.

Trump is preparing to “defund” California.

News reports suggest that Trump is preparing to “cancel” billions of federal funds to California. See CNN, Trump preparing large-scale cancellation of federal funding for California, sources say.

As reported by CNN, the “cuts” to be announced by Trump relate to 2024 appropriated funds. Trump has no power to “cancel” or “cut” funds appropriated by Congress. As with other attempts to “cancel” funds appropriated by Congress, the courts will issue injunctions preventing Trump from making the cuts. To that extent, Trump's announcement is performative politics with no actual impact.

However, as reported by Lucian Truscott in his Substack newsletter, Trump is turning the U.S. into a private club, and we are not members, the reconciliation bill for the 2025 budget seeks to “zero out” federal funds historically appropriated to California for items like flood control.

To clarify, the reconciliation bill is a proposal that has not yet been passed. If Trump convinces Congress to cut billions in aid from California, we should assume that GOP losses in California alone will be sufficient to give Democrats control of the House. Said differently, one should expect GOP members of California’s congressional delegation to threaten to withhold support for the reconciliation bill.

It is, of course, possible that Trump will steamroll Republican representatives and force them to support the reconciliation bill. At that point, Californians should consider whether it is fair that they provide a net flow of funds to the federal government, which are then used to fund red states that draw funds from the federal government.

Imbalances in payments and receipts from the federal government are unavoidable. What is avoidable is the punitive withholding of funds from California for political reasons. That is a dangerous political path for Trump to follow, but common sense is lost on Trump.

California Governor Gavin Newsom has already suggested that California will begin withholding funds from the federal government if Trump engages in retaliatory cuts against California. See Newsom floats withholding federal taxes as Trump threatens California.

Newsom’s threat is an empty one. “California” does not pay federal taxes to the federal government. Individual taxpayers who live in California do. Newsom’s comments should be interpreted as calling for a federal tax strike. That is a no-win situation for everyone, and we should presume that cooler heads will prevail. California is the world’s fourth-largest economy and 15% of the US economy. Punishing one of the nation’s economic engines is a stupid idea.

The Supreme Court rules that DOGE can have access to Social Security data.

In a 6-3 decision, the Supreme Court’s reactionary majority ruled that DOGE could have access to Social Security data on hundreds of millions of Americans. See NYTimes, Justices Grant DOGE Access to Social Security Data and Let the Team Shield Records. (Accessible to all.)

The Supreme Court’s action, effectively granting access to DOGE to search for “fraud, abuse, and waste,” is a betrayal of hundreds of millions of Americans who trusted the Social Security Administration to protect the privacy of their earnings history and medical records.

Unlike other DOGE lawsuits, this challenge did not raise constitutional issues about the ability of Trump and DOGE to withhold funds appropriated by Congress. At root, the issue is one of policy—balancing the privacy rights of Americans who paid into Social Security against the transparently false justification of the administration to find fraud, waste, and abuse.

While the effort to root out fraud and waste is a legitimate goal that the president should be able to pursue, existing laws provide the president with the necessary tools to do so. Instead of using those tools, the administration asked the Supreme Court to allow a group of unsupervised hackers to circumvent IT security protocols to download, copy, and transmit sensitive data to destinations unknown.

Worse, the Supreme Court allowed the administration to do so by granting relief on its so-called “shadow docket,” where the Court grants relief without benefit of a full hearing on the merits in the district court, court of appeals, and Supreme Court.

This decision by the Court and the actions of Trump and DOGE should anger every American who trusted that their information would be private. Even the most extreme MAGA followers should worry about who has access to their private earnings and medical data on Friday evening.

Concluding Thoughts.

Join me on Saturday morning for my livestream at 9 am PT / Noon ET. I will discuss these topics in more detail.

The return of Kilmar Abrego Garcia to the US in response to an arrest warrant issued after indictment has all the hallmarks of bad-faith prosecutorial misconduct. When Judge Xinis asked the DOJ to provide her with evidence of criminal activity by Abrego Garcia, the DOJ gave her nothing. At the very moment the DOJ was denying Judge Xinis evidence of Abrego Garcia’s alleged criminal activity, the DOJ was presenting evidence to a grand jury of alleged criminal activity by Abrego Garcia. Something is rotten in the state of Denmark.

If there is any good news here, it is that Abrego Garcia will be tried before a jury of his peers, who will be able to judge the evidence presented to them under the same standard that applies to every other criminal defendant in the US justice system: Proof beyond a reasonable doubt.

There does not appear to be a détente between Trump and Musk. As I noted yesterday, that fact makes it more difficult for congressional Republicans to pass the reconciliation bill and will slow the work of DOGE.

Indeed, one wonders whether the DOGE staffers on loan to the federal government from Tesla and SpaceX remain in their federal posts on Friday, or if they have been recalled to Musk’s companies. My guess is that the main drivers of DOGE’s illegal sweep through the federal government have turned in their federal badges and are on their way back to Tesla and SpaceX. Good riddance!

[Robert B. Hubbell Newsletter]

[liesmyteachertoldme]

Social Security

Germany’s “Iron Chancellor” Otto von Bismark didn’t pass the world’s first modern Social Security system out of the kindness of his heart.

The year was 1889, and Bismark was fighting hard against the rising tide of socialism; the second volume of Karl Marx’s Das Kapital had been published just a few years earlier in 1885, prompting growing calls for strikes, protests, and wealth redistribution.

For Bismark, his social security program was intended to appease socialists while preserving the conservative political order that he had spent decades building. And on May 24, 1889, his new “Old Age and Disability Insurance Law” was passed by the Reichstag and signed by Kaiser Wilhelm II.

Workers under Bismark’s program became eligible for benefits at age 70, and its costs were paid equally by employees, businesses, and the state.

It also had its intended effect: support for Germany’s unified socialist party fell dramatically after the law was passed, and it became the leading blueprint for similar programs around the world.

Franklin Roosevelt pushed for a Social Security program in the United States for similar reasons; socialist movements were growing quickly in America, especially under the economic devastation of the Great Depression.

Politicians like Louisiana Senator Huey Long were calling for full-blown wealth redistribution, promising every family a $5,000 estate (large sum in the 1930s) and guaranteed income.

Then there was Francis Townsend in California, who proposed a national sales tax to provide a $200 monthly pension to every American over the age of 60-- with the requirement that the money had to be spent within 30 days to stimulate the economy.

These ideas spread like wildfire, and soon there was major support in Congress for some sort of national pension.

Roosevelt modeled his program on Otto von Bismark’s-- but lowered the age of eligibility to 65 instead of 70.

The first financial analysis of Social Security came in 1941, when the Board of Trustees published a report stating that the program would remain solvent and well-funded indefinitely, i.e. pretty much forever.

At the time, there was far more tax revenue being paid into Social Security than there were benefit payments being paid from the system.  So Social Security essentially ran a massive surplus each year… and the accumulated surplus was invested in a giant trust fund.

But eventually cracks started to form.

In 1983, the Social Security trustees issued a more sanguine assessment; this time they claimed that the program would still remain solvent for their 75-year horizon (i.e. through 2057), but that costs of paying benefits to Social Security recipients would exceed tax revenue by 2018… at which point they would have to start drawing down the trust fund.

Pfff. It was 1983. No one in Washington cared about what might or might not happen 35 years later. So, barring cosmetic adjustments, politicians ignored the problem.

The Trustees sounded the alarm bells again in the 1990s when they projected that Social Security’s trust funds would run out of money by the year 2042. And, as time has continued to pass, that projected depletion date has become closer and closer.

Starting in the 2010s, Social Security projected that its trust funds would be fully depleted by 2035-- roughly 20-25 years into the future.

And according to their latest assessment, the projected depletion date is now 2033. That’s just eight years away.

So, what does this actually mean?

Well, Social Security is already running an annual deficit, i.e. the program pays out MORE in monthly benefits than it collects in tax revenue. So, each year they have to dip into the trust fund to make ends meet.

But in eight years, the trust fund balance will be zero… so they won’t have any savings to offset Social Security’s annual deficit anymore. And that annual Social Security deficit is projected to be more than $500 billion by 2033.

There will essentially be two options at that point; either

(1) the federal government will pick up the tab, essentially adding $500 billion per year to the US budget deficit; or

(2) Social Security beneficiaries will have to take an immediate cut to their benefits. The initial cut would be around 20-25% and become worse over time.

Option 2 is unthinkable given the political consequences. But option 1 would only lead to more economic problems… and a lot of inflation. The US government needs to be reducing its budget deficit, not expanding it.

The good news is that there are ways to fix Social Security; the program itself has recommended plenty of solutions.

For example, given that life expectancy at age 65 is now so much longer than it was in 1935, one recommendation is to gradually phase-in a higher retirement age to 69.

Simultaneously, a small payroll tax increase of 1%, combined with increasing the maximum taxable salary, would render the program solvent for at least 75 more years.

And these just scratch the surface-- there are plenty of other options.

The bad news is that the longer Congress waits, the more painful the solutions will become. If they wait until 2030 to pass any reform, there will have to be much more severe tax hikes and much more abrupt changes to the retirement age.

So, dealing with the problem now will make life less difficult in eight years’ time.

Unfortunately, few are willing to do anything about it.

On rare occasions some politician proposes necessary reforms. In fact, the last one came last week from Rep. Gwen Moore of Wisconsin, who introduced the Social Security Enhancement and Protection Act.

But these bills never go anywhere and ‘die in committee’.

Bottom line, the problem is 100% fixable-- just like the rest of America’s economic challenges. The national debt is fixable. Fraud, waste, and abuse is fixable. Inflation is fixable. Everything is fixable.

There just doesn’t seem to be the will to do what is necessary… so these problems will continue to fester until they become a crisis.

To your freedom,

James Hickman Co-Founder, Schiff Sovereign LLC

[allthebrazilianpolitics]

Social Security scandal forces restart of cabinet shuffle in Brazil

Márcia Lopes expected to replace Cida Gonçalves at Ministry of Women while Carlos Lupi is sacked in wake of pension fraud; aides say changes will be limited

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is set to continue reshuffling his cabinet on Monday (5) with changes at the Ministry of Women. On Friday (2), he dismissed Minister of Social Security Carlos Lupi and has already appointed a new head for the position. However, the ongoing wave of changes are targeted and do not indicate a comprehensive reform previously considered to strengthen his administration’s base and secure allies for the 2026 reelection campaign, and which ultimately did not materialize.

Aside from the changes in the Ministries of Social Security and Women, no other cabinet changes are anticipated, a presidential aide told Valor. The Social Democratic Party (PSD) had been lobbying for the Ministry of Tourism for months but was informed by Mr. Lula’s emissaries that the position would remain with Brazil Union.

Sources within the government and the Workers’ Party (PT) revealed to Valor that Mr. Lula, on Friday, extended an invitation via phone to former Minister of Social Development and Fight Against Hunger, Márcia Lopes, a PT member, to take over the Ministry of Women from Cida Gonçalves. Ms. Lopes is scheduled to meet with Lula on Monday to discuss the matter. Valor was unable to reach the nominee for comment. She confirmed to O Globo that she has accepted Mr. Lula’s offer.

The president had been dissatisfied with Ms. Gonçalves’s performance for months. In December, when presidential aides discussed a cabinet reshuffle aimed at expanding the influence of the Centrão bloc, changes at the Ministry of Women were already under consideration.

Continue reading.

[kinialohaguy]

Social Insecurity

Aloha kākou and Happy Tax Day. Marxist democrats say they are having a “Save Social Security Day Of Action.” House minority leader Extreme Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) says Social Security is an “Earned Benefit.” How can social security be an “earned benefit” when the government confiscated the money from taxpayer’s paychecks? How is social security not a Ponzi scheme when the government presumed the…

[loislane-ana]

NEWS! ~~~ doge, leavitt, tariffs, social security corruption, associated press, blue origin, taxes, atlanta e-bikes, close plane call in chicago, refugees, budget, ice, crime fighting drones, gas prices, fdr flood gates, hoboken path, nyc, snl

[jangillman]

[reality-detective]

Social Security increases to begin in April. 🤔

[in4newz]

U.S. OFFICIALS SET FOR UKRAINE TALKS IN RIYADH NEXT WEEK

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, and National Security Advisor Mike Waltz are reportedly heading to Riyadh soon, to meet with Ukrainian officials, including Andriy Yermak, the Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine.

The talks, following their meeting with Russia, aim to advance Zelensky’s air and sea truce proposal amid a U.S. aid pause.

With Europe pushing $20B in aid and Russia rejecting the truce, the stakes are high for Kyiv’s inclusion.

[trexalicious]

This says it all really... #DemocraticHypocrisy #SelectiveOutrage