https://www.cato.org/blog/time-face-...ocial-security
https://www.cato.org/policy-analysis...h#introduction

For nearly 90 years, a widespread misconception has shaped how Americans view Social Security. Many believe that their payroll taxes are saved in a trust fund, to be drawn down when they retire. But in reality, Social Security has never operated as a savings system. Instead, it functions as an income transfer program, where the taxes collected from today’s workers immediately fund the benefits for current retirees.

In the 1930s, the idea of government assistance was unpopular, and policymakers needed a way to sell Social Security to a skeptical public. Positioning it as an “earned” benefit convinced Americans that they had a personal stake in the program. But in truth, it was always a government transfer program.

The notion that people are simply getting back what they paid in makes it politically difficult to reduce benefits.

Today, all benefits are paid by current tax collections or borrowing since Social Security taxes no longer fully cover the cost of benefits. Based on Congressional Budget Office (CBO) data, the government will borrow $4.1 trillion, including associate interest costs, between now and 2033 to pay for Social Security benefits.


Another article states it will take 75 years of annual 4.5% budget cuts to break even on the unfunded liabilities that are Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid.

This is the largest problem facing the nation that no one, including Trump, will seriously address.