Elon Musk Calls Social Security 'The Biggest Ponzi Scheme Of All Time'

Elon Musk is calling Social Security a “Ponzi scheme,” prompting suspicion that the world’s richest antheral is simply hoping to privatize a societal information nett that has existed since the 1930s — and has kept millions of elderly, mediocre and disabled Americans from destitution.

The billionaire argued Friday connected “The Joe Rogan Experience” podcast that the United States authorities is “one large pyramid scheme” before blasting Social Security arsenic “the biggest Ponzi strategy of each time.”

When asked to clarify, Musk said, “Well, radical wage into Social Security and the wealth goes retired of Social Security immediately, but the work for Social Security is your full status career. If you look astatine the aboriginal obligations of Social Security, it acold exceeds the taxation revenue.”

Musk, who oversees Trump’s cost-cutting inaugural for national spending, the Department of Government Efficiency, added that “people are surviving mode longer than expected” and frankincense the government’s work to wage the indebtedness “will beryllium overmuch worse successful the future.”

He is far from the archetypal conservative to qualify Social Security arsenic a “Ponzi scheme,” which refers to a benignant of fraud successful which existing customers get payouts that travel from the investments of caller customers.

The Social Security Administration has said it could look a shortage of funds by 2035. But many Democrats person argued that the program’s funds should simply beryllium shored up by eliminating the headdress connected Social Security taxes for precocious earners, meaning that radical who marque a batch of wealth would wage proportionately much into the program.

Elsewhere during his podcast appearance, Musk shared debunked claims astir Social Security.

“We recovered conscionable with a basal hunt of the Social Security database that determination were 20 cardinal dormant radical marked arsenic alive,” Musk said, prompting big Joe Rogan to inquire if these expected dormant radical are really receiving wealth and however overmuch of it they’re getting.

“Some of them are getting money,” Musk said.

He made similar comments past month, falsely claiming that “tens of millions” of dormant radical are receiving Social Security benefits. That misconception stems, successful part, from the mode information is labeled successful Social Security’s bundle system, The Associated Press reported. A 2024 report from SSA’s inspector wide recovered little than 1% successful improper payments from 2015 to 2022, and astir of those were overpayments to radical who were alive.

Musk’s comments connected Social Security landed arsenic the bureau faces melodramatic cuts, telling its employees Thursday that determination volition beryllium a monolithic reorganization involving “significant workforce reductions.”