Joe Biden Draws Mixed Reactions After Forcefully Defending Social Security

Former President Joe Biden drew mixed reactions when he took the stage Tuesday—his first major public appearance since leaving office—and forcefully defended the Social Security Administration (SSA) as it stares in the face of looming layoffs and the shuttering of crucial services that benefit millions of Americans.

Why It Matters

Biden, 82, has largely stayed out of the public eye since he left the White House. But the former president returned this week to highlight the Democratic Party’s concerns about the Trump administration’s cuts to the Social Security Administration, threatening a critical program that 73 million elderly and disabled Americans rely on.

Biden’s comments on Tuesday came as the SSA is planning to lay off 7,000 employees. The agency also recently reneged on a plan to cut off phone services after public backlash over the cuts, which would have disproportionately affected elderly and disabled SSA recipients.

President Donald Trump has publicly pledged to safeguard Social Security, which pays out $1.5 trillion every year to retirees, survivors, disabled and poor Americans.

But SpaceX CEO and Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) head Elon Musk has denigrated the program, which Americans pay into, as “the biggest Ponzi scheme of all time.”

Trump and Musk have also suggested, without evidence, that Social Security benefits are being fraudulently paid out to millions of dead people.

What To Know

Biden’s address in Chicago to the national conference of Advocates, Counselors and Representatives for the Disabled drew varying reactions from Democrats and Republicans alike.

Call To Activism, a liberal group that tracks the Trump administration’s moves, posted on X, formerly Twitter: “BREAKING NEWS: A fiery Joe Biden delivers the first speech since leaving office and he calls for DIGNITY for every single person who lives in this country. ‘It’s who we are as Americans. That’s what it’s about.’ I miss him.”

The Blaze, a right-wing media outlet, struck a different tone, writing on X: “A confused and lost Joe Biden is already rambling into the microphone over blaring music during his first speech since leaving office.”

James Surowiecki, an economics reporter and contributor at The Atlantic, wrote before Biden’s address: “There is no one the country needs to hear from less right now than Joe Biden.”

Others echoed that sentiment.

“It takes a special level of chutzpah as the man most responsible for reelecting Donald Trump to decide it’s your voice that is missing in this moment,” a person who worked closely with the Biden campaign told Politico. “The country would be better served if he rode off into the sunset.”

Biden drew the ire of members of his own party when he initially refused to bow out of the 2024 presidential race following a disastrous debate performance against Trump. Though Biden did eventually drop out and then Vice President Kamala Harris replaced him as the Democratic nominee, many Democrats still blamed him for the party’s loss in the 2024 election.

The 46th president was joined on Tuesday by a bipartisan group of former lawmakers, including former Republican Senator Roy Blunt of Missouri, former Democratic Senator Debbie Stabenow of Michigan and former Social Security Administrator Martin O’Malley.

O’Malley, in his remarks, accused Trump and Musk of having “gutted” the SSA “with a chainsaw.” He also described Biden as “the greatest defender of Social Security” in the last 20 years.

Biden, in his keynote address, described Social Security as a “sacred promise” from the government and touted his administration’s efforts to make the agency more “efficient and more effective” at delivering on benefits.

The former president also pointed to the fact that he signed the bipartisan Social Security Fairness Act into law as one of his last actions before leaving office. The legislation restored benefits to public service workers, including firefighters, police officers, and teachers who had their payments reduced despite paying into the system.

Among other things, Biden on Tuesday accused Trump and Musk of taking a “hatchet” to Social Security, referring to the Trump administration’s steep cuts to the SSA that have imposed significant consequences on recipients across the country.

The Washington Post published a lengthy report last month detailing how the agency has been hobbled by its website repeatedly crashing, long call wait times, overloaded servers and staffing shortages.

Biden also referred to the Silicon Valley motto, espoused by Musk, to “move fast and break things.”

“Well, they’re certainly breaking things,” the former president said in his address, later adding, “Who do they think they are?”

What People Are Saying

The official X account for the SSA wrote after Biden’s address: “Former President Joe Biden is lying to Americans.”

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt mocked Biden ahead of his address on Tuesday, telling reporters at a press briefing: “I’m shocked that he is speaking at nighttime. I would have thought his bedtime was much earlier than his speech tonight.

“Let me make this very clear ahead of former President Biden’s remarks: The president, this president, President Trump, is absolutely certain about protecting Social Security benefits for law-abiding, tax-paying American citizens and seniors who have paid into this program. He will always protect that program. He campaigned on it.”

David Axelrod, a key architect of Barack Obama’s presidential campaigns, wrote on X before Biden’s speech: “Of course Joe Biden has the standing as a former president and the right of every citizen to speak out. And his admonitions that Social Security is under threat are important. But you have to know Trump is excited to see his favorite foil back in the fray.”

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said in a call with reporters earlier Tuesday: “This is an all hands on deck moment, which is why President Biden’s voice in this moment is so important.”

O’Malley said before Tuesday’s address: “Social Security is a sacred promise between generations. We are deeply grateful to the President for joining us at ACRD to discuss how we can keep that promise for all Americans.”

Independent Senator Angus King of Maine, who typically caucuses with Democrats, told The Post: “What’s going on is the destruction of the agency from the inside out, and it’s accelerating. I have people approaching me all the time in their 70s and 80s, and they’re beside themselves. They don’t know what’s coming.”

What Happens Next

A bipartisan group of lawmakers recently asked the SSA in a letter to clarify its retroactivity policy surrounding the Social Security Fairness Act, particularly for those who were wrongly advised by SSA staff in earlier years.

The senators asked the agency to revise its policy and grant eligible Americans the full scope of back payments allowed by law, saying the SSA should issue “maximum retroactivity payments to all spouses who were protected on prior applications.”

The SSA has not yet issued a formal response to the letter.

The Associated Press contributed reporting to this story.