The U.S. Federal Government borrows from the Social Security Trust Funds (OASDI) by investing surplus payroll taxes in special Treasury bonds to finance government operations, with every administration since the 1980s participating, using funds for things like wars (Vietnam) or general spending, but the debt is considered an obligation to be repaid with interest, not stolen funds, although the government's ability to repay is a point of ongoing debate, especially as funds are drawn down.
The short answer is yes. Under the current law, an individual's wealth or current income level has no impact on their eligibility to receive a Social Security retirement benefit. In other words, even if you have $10 billion in assets, you could qualify for Social Security as long as you meet the requirements.
To receive the full State Pension you must have paid 35 years of NI contributions. If you have never worked, and therefore never paid NI, you may still be eligible for the State Pension if you have received certain state benefits, for example carer's allowance or Universal Credit.
President Reagan signed major bipartisan Social Security reforms in 1983, primarily to address funding shortfalls, which included making some benefits taxable, gradually raising the full retirement age to 67, and accelerating payroll tax increases; he also signed legislation restoring minimum benefits and increasing penalties for misuse of Social Security numbers.
Debt held by the public was actually paid down by $453 billion over the 1998-2001 periods, the only time this happened between 1970 and 2018. Federal spending fell from 20.7% GDP in 1993 to 17.6% GDP in 2000, below the historical average (1966 to 2015) of 20.2% GDP.
Lyndon B. Johnson (LBJ) significantly expanded Social Security by signing the landmark 1965 Amendments, creating Medicare for the elderly and Medicaid for the poor, and boosting benefits; he also reorganized the Social Security Administration (SSA) and controversially moved its finances "on-budget," though he didn't steal funds, but rather shifted accounting to disguise war-related deficits.
1 United States 21,764,799 2 Euro area 18,075,643 3 United Kingdom 9,837,535 4 France 7,368,685 5 Norway 7,110,029 6 Germany 6,6,91,139 7 Japan 4,687,815 8 Netherlands 4,197,719 9 Luxembourg 3,965,300 10 Italy 2,749,75 https://www.ceicdata. com/en/indicator/norway/external-debt--of-nominal- gdp https://www.gfmag.com/ ...
Federal Reserve data shows that about 23% of Americans have no debt.
“Next time a Republican tells you that 'Social Security is broke,' remind them that Pres. Bush 'borrowed' $1.37 trillion of Social Security surplus revenue to pay for his tax cuts for the rich and his war in Iraq and never paid it back”.
On July 30, 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed into law legislation that established the Medicare and Medicaid programs.
President Clinton oversaw the second longest period of peacetime economic expansion in American history. Months into his first term, he signed the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993, which raised taxes and set the stage for future budget surpluses.
This will ultimately result in drastically higher taxes, reduced benefits, increased debt, or cuts to other critical government programs. The Government Has Borrowed $1.7 Trillion From The Social Security Trust Fund. The government has borrowed the total value of the Trust Fund to pay for other government spending.
Meanwhile, the tax rate reduction reduced the tax payments of middle class and poor taxpayers. The net effect was a marked shift in the tax burden toward the top 1 percent amounting to about 10 percentage points. Lower top marginal tax rates had encouraged these taxpayers to generate more taxable income.
February 2005 – Republican President George W. Bush outlined a major initiative to reform Social Security which included partial privatization of the system, personal Social Security accounts, and options to permit Americans to divert a portion of their Social Security tax (FICA) into secured investments.
From 20 September 2025, the full pension is available, under the assets test, for homeowner singles whose assessable assets are under $321,500 – for homeowner couples the number is $481,500. The numbers for non-homeowners are $579,500 and $739,500 respectively.
Prioritizing a pension over Social Security can be attractive for several reasons. First, pensions often provide a more predictable and potentially higher income stream. The predictability of a fixed income from a pension can also be advantageous who prefer financial stability and want to plan their retirement budget.