Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) said Saturday that one of his top priorities, once he takes control of the chamber’s Social Security Subcommittee in January, will be to lift the cap on taxable income that funds the program and increase benefit payments by at least $2400 per year.

  • HurricaneLiz@lemmy.world
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    5 hours ago

    I wonder if this will help ppl like me who became fully disabled young. I was 27 when I was awarded SSD and can’t afford to even rent a bedroom in someone’s house. I’m 44 now and living with an 80 yr old Aunt. When she dies I’ll be homeless again if things stay the same.

  • arak@lemmy.today
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    1 day ago

    Wtf TIL social security tax is capped at $184,500 income level. The rich really fucked us working class for decades

    • Branch_Ranch@lemmy.world
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      Yea, weather you make $184,500 or a billion you pay the same into SS. Pretty dumb, but a really easy way to help overcome the SS deficit.

    • chisel@piefed.social
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      SS contributions have a cap because SS payouts have a cap and the payout is proportional to what you paid in.

      The contribution cap is a popular talking point, but they always ignore that you’d also need to increase the payout cap, so it’s not exactly a silver bullet.

  • givesomefucks@lemmy.world
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    1 day ago

    Top priority should be removing the cap on deductions so it’s funded.

    Then once the wealthy are paying into it, increase payments.

    • YourBestFriend@quokk.au
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      1 day ago

      We could probably spend less money on the baby killing machine that makes psychopath soldiers.

      • freagle@lemmy.ml
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        1 day ago

        What!? And let our military shrink to only 600% the size of the next largest military ?

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          It’s funny how some people, (not you frisbird) who claim to be lefties and say they hate Trump, go ape shit the moment you touch the military budget.

          Fucking posers.

          “I needed education in my shitty country so I killed people but that makes me okay because my country is shitty! I’m innocent”

          Why is there no guillotine emoji?

      • givesomefucks@lemmy.world
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        1 day ago

        We can obviously spend less on the military, but that’s not how OASDI is funded…

        You also don’t know anything about the military apparently

        • Maeve@kbin.earth
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          1 day ago

          They can free up that money and allocate it elsewhere.

          ETA Pentagon never passed an audit.

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            4 hours ago

            How do you pass an audit while doing classified R&D?

            “Yes, and here we spent 10 million dollars on a project which we cannot confirm exists”

            That’s also how you end up with the Pentagon spending 10 million dollars on a single toilet. They bought more than the toilet, they’re just only willing to show you the toilet.

  • foggy@lemmy.world
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    1 day ago

    If your assets total more than $10M, you need to contribute 1% of that to social security annually.

    More than solves our problems. And if you really wanted 2 yachts and this gets in the way of that, news flash, you’re too poor for a second yacht. Complain less and go be that rock star capitalist we all know you are and snow us that this doesn’t change your lifestyle.

  • schipelblorp@sh.itjust.works
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    1 day ago

    Yes, let’s make seniors, the most coddled generation in history, our first priority.

    Edit: I’m not saying we shouldn’t do this. I’m saying it’s obvious that boomer seniors, as a generation, are the most privileged people in this country’s history, both because of economic environment and by government benefits across their life span.

    Don’t shoot the messenger.

    • inclementimmigrant@lemmy.worldOP
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      That’s certainly a take I suppose.

      But yeah, let’s not shore up Social Security for all Americans including future generations to be able to not go homeless after they suffer a disability or worked until their bodies are broken and just keep the future generations working until they die at work.

      Sounds like a great plan there, let’s be short sighted to be a petty bitch.

          • schipelblorp@sh.itjust.works
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            I’m not. You’re intrepreting me as saying I don’t think we should raise SS. I think we should. I’m asking why it should be the first priority. You reply we should do it first to prevent homelessness–so you are introducing an issue that is more important.

            • inclementimmigrant@lemmy.worldOP
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              1 day ago

              First off, let’s get the wording clear here. The statement was “one of his top priorities” not first priority.

              Second, if you think that we should remove the cap off of social security then we’re done here. You, think that the removal of the cap is necessary, I think it’s necessary, Sanders thinks it’s necessary. We’re all in agreement, huzzah! The fact that if it’s first, second, third, which again was not the wording being used, is moot outside of your disdain of the elderly.

    • ° 。Juniper 。°@piefed.zip
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      1 day ago

      Young people receive social security benefits too, like SSDI and survivor payments. I’ve been on SSDI myself since before I was 30 years old.

      • schipelblorp@sh.itjust.works
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        1 day ago

        I’ve been on, too. But why are people with plenty of assistance already the first priority? Just seems weird and indicative of leadership ignoring younger generation’s problems and prioritizing boomers, but I’m not against it, of course.

        • ° 。Juniper 。°@piefed.zip
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          Honestly $200 extra a month might help ease the burden on our loved ones, that’s only two weeks of groceries for a lot of households right now. Just a personal example, the entirety of my grandmother’s benefits goes to her housing (high cola). My uncle pays her medical bills, and he’s the only one who has any money to spare. My sibling buys her groceries. I buy her clothing and other necessities as I can, but I’m essentially in the same financial situation she is. The rest of her family is dead, and in 3-5 years she may only have my sibling left to help her.

          So, yes, Bernie might be slapping a bandaid on this elderly poverty problem with a possibly easy win, but it’s a starting point for further taxing the billionaires. And if we’re lucky the momentum from that will also fix education, medical access, housing, and the rest of what we know we need as a healthy society

          • schipelblorp@sh.itjust.works
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            1 day ago

            It’s not really taxing billionaires since SS taxes income on labor, but I agree, it’s necessary to do, along with a long list of other things that need more involved legislative scaffolding.

        • Maeve@kbin.earth
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          1 day ago

          Then you should know better. Keep the TAC tax on social security income, for payments over a certain amount.

          Crappy Auto-Incorrect

    • Manjushri@piefed.social
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      22 hours ago

      Yes, let’s make seniors, the most coddled generation in history, our first priority.

      Straw-man argument. The article never says it’s his first priority. It says it is a top priority, not the top priority. Bernie keeps a lot of irons in the fire and works on a lot of issues at the same time.

    • Corvidae@lemmy.world
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      There are actually two different groups of boomers, the early born ones, and the later born ones. The latter didn’t have the opportunities the former had after WWII. The boomers born from 1960 to 1964 were going to be grouped as Gen X, but that was dropped and they now have a “Generation Jones”.

      As Jonesers reached adulthood, the United States military draft and involvement in the Vietnam War had ended; thus, they had no defining political cause, as opposition to the war was for the older Boomers.[20] The Woodstock music festival (1969) was a defining moment for older Boomers, whereas Jonesers tend to remember the Watergate scandal (1972–74) and the cultural cynicism it begat.[6] While in high school, members of Generation Jones felt they had just missed the real hippie era.[21] Key characteristics assigned to members are pessimism, distrust of government, and general cynicism.[22][23]

    • Aqivex@fedinsfw.app
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      1 day ago

      Have you ever heard of selfish altruism?

      There are so so so many of these seniors. They made so many of 'em back in the day, the birth chart boomed with goddamn babies!

      It is in the best interest of everyone in society south of 55 years old, that the 65+ year olds are taken care of by the State’s (if we must have a State, I guess…) social nets, and that they are robust.

      Not just because time comes for us all, but because the rest of the system’s bullshit would prevent communities from caring for their own seniors without the younger members going destitute and burnt out on their now third job.

    • Rhaedas@fedia.io
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      We could do this and all the other things at the same time. If this is one thing on a laundry list of fixes, would you object to it just because you aren’t getting social security yet? Singling out an aid for people to not get because of who they are and/or because you won’t get that benefit is what we complain about with MAGA.

      I put this next to the quote from veterans who say “I don’t agree with what you say, but I fought for your rights to say it.” I’m right with you on blaming Boomers for where we are and why, but I’ll still support making sure old people don’t have to decide between rent, meds, or food. Even if some of them are hypocrites who made the world this way after being handed everything.

      • schipelblorp@sh.itjust.works
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        1 day ago

        I’m onboard, too, just wondering what it means that it’s the first priority. I hope it’s just that it’s the easiest way to help the most people in the least time.

        • Manjushri@piefed.social
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          22 hours ago

          You highlighted the word “first” there. I don’t see that word used at all in the article. Even the headline says removing the SS Cap is “A” top priority, not “The” top priority. The text of the article refers to it as one of the top priorities.

          Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) said Saturday that one of his top priorities , once he takes control of the chamber’s Social Security Subcommittee in January, will be to lift the cap on taxable income that funds the program and increase benefit payments by at least $2400 per year.

          Another article I just read listed some of those other priorities if he does reclaim the chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee.

          • Rescind Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill
          • Work towards Medicare for All
          • Advance the PRO Act in the Senate that would make it easier for Americans to join a union
          • Raise federal minimum wage

          He also wants to work on all of these, not just one at a time saying:

          The new Democratic-controlled Congress will need to be good, he said, at “walking and chewing bubblegum at the same time.”

  • WoodScientist@lemmy.world
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    19 hours ago

    I love most things Bernie does, but this is idiotic. Why are we talking about increasing benefits, when the system is going to have to cut benefits in just 7 years when the trust fund runs out?

    I’m all for eliminating the tax cap, but those funds should be used entirely for stabilizing the system. The Boomers are already the richest generation in American history. Their children are poorer than they are. And each generation after is poorer still. We should be focused on ensuring that the future poorer generations can enjoy the same level of benefits that today’s Boomer retirees can get, rather than giving the wealthy Boomers even more money.

    And before anyone says, “why not do both?” Because there’s finite money here. Every penny that goes to increasing benefits now is one less penny to secure the system’s long-term future. Removing the cap entirely and putting 100% of the money to extending program solvency would only extend the system’s solvency to 2055. It’s a good idea to do this, but removing the cap is not an infinite money glitch. There’s only so many dollars to be had. And frankly, the Boomers have enough dollars already. Let’s make sure Millennials and Gen Z will get the same level of benefits Boomers enjoy before we go giving Boomers even more money. When the Social Security trust fund’s exhaustion date has been extended to “forever,” then we can talk about raising benefits for existing retirees.

    Sure, you can say, “let’s do both and raise other taxes,” but again, finite dollars. If we’re going to be raising taxes for benefits, I would rather those dollars go to Medicare for All rather than raising the Social Security benefits for the wealthiest generation in American history.

    • CrimeIsLegalNow@ani.social
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      3 hours ago

      Because that’s not how SS works or is funded and you’re repeating the same fear mongering nonsense that’s been said by people trying to end SS for seventy years.

  • humanspiral@lemmy.ca
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    1 day ago

    I’m not sure about increasing payments. BBB followed through on election bribe to reduce taxes on the income. it got a big inflation raise this year. 2032 SS fund 0 date is a path to use extra SS tax funding to extend that date for the benefit of those who will pay the higher SS taxes. Bernie says stupid shit sometimes, and more transfer funding to seniors is once again asking you to listen to experts telling you how dumb Bernie is.