Despite Trump’s pledge not to cut Social Security, administration officials keep letting the real agenda slip out. First, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent hinted that privatizing Social Security was on the table. Now, Social Security Commissioner Frank Bisignano says he’s open to the idea of raising the retirement age.
In an interview on Fox Business News last week, host Maria Bartiromo asked Bisignano if he’d “consider raising the retirement age,” to which the commissioner replied, “I think everything’s being considered.”
“Bisignano said that he would need Congress’ help to officially raise the retirement age and acknowledged, ‘That will take a while,’ before adding, ‘But we have plenty of time.’” – Common Dreams, 9/19/25
Yes, it takes an act of Congress and the signature of the president to change Social Security law. But given the Trump administration’s meddling in Social Security this year — enacting arbitrary rule changes that put obstacles in the way of people simply trying to access their earned benefits — Bisignano’s statements betray an ideological bent that undermines the program.
Anyway, it’s not as if congressional Republicans haven’t proposed raising the retirement age. The current full retirement age is 67; the GOP has floated proposals to raise it as high as 70, under the cover of fixing the the projected depletion of Social Security’s trust funds in 2034. Meanwhile, Republicans have refused to consider solutions that would bring more revenue into the system, preferring benefit cuts instead. As we have pointed out many times, raising the retirement age is a lifetime benefit cut — 7% for every year the age is increased.
Conservatives argue that since ‘people are living longer,’ they can wait longer to collect full benefits. That ignores the fact that life expectancy actually is declining for some demographic groups — and that workers in physically demanding jobs simply cannot work into their late 60s.
Not all older workers can continue working into their late 60s (iStock by Getty Images)
In an episode of our podcast in 2024, Los Angeles Times columnist Michael Hiltzik called raising the retirement age “the stupidest and most dishonest fix for Social Security.” He explained further: “Not everybody spends their careers with their belly behind a desk in an air-conditioned office, and the life expectancy and the need to retire is obviously very different between office workers and members of Congress and construction workers. But (Republicans) want (a higher) retirement age — and it makes no sense.”
In the Republican world view, workers must continue to sacrifice while the rich get richer. “Republicans gave away trillions in tax cuts for the wealthy (in Trump’s Unfair, Ugly Bill),” said Senator Ed Markey (D-MA). “Now they are asking Americans to work longer. We won’t stand for it.”
Rep. John Larson (D-CT), one of the fiercest seniors’ champions in the U.S. House, said in a statement:
“After months of denying it, the Trump Administration is finally admitting what we suspected all along. They are planning on raising the retirement age. Slowly but surely, they have all fallen in line with the Project 2025 playbook to cut benefits. Some Americans may have been born at night, but not last night.” – Rep. John Larson (D-CT)
We have long endorsed a far better idea than raising the retirement age: demanding that the wealthy begin paying their fair share into Social Security. Rep. Larson and other members of the House and Senate have introduced bills to adjust the payroll wage cap (currently set at $176,100 in annual earnings) in order to help close Social Security’s projected funding gap. Republicans talk only of cutting benefits (though they rarely call it that).
While conservatives hedge by saying that their proposals would not affect current retirees or those nearing retirement, increasing the retirement age for future seniors would be a devastating blow to Gen X, Millennials, Gen Z, and the generations behind them. Today’s younger adults will rely on Social Security even more than current seniors do — to which we say: who wants to sacrifice their children’s and grandchildren’s retirement security while Republicans strive to enrich the already wealthy?