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Biden returns to podium for first time to slam Trump’s Social Security plans: ‘Wreck it so they could rob it’
Former President Joe Biden took shots at the Trump administration’s Social Security policies in his first major speech since leaving the White House on Tuesday evening.
«Seriously, people are now genuinely concerned for the first time in history, for the first and only time in history, that Social Security benefits may be delayed or interrupted,» Biden said from the Advocates, Counselors and Representatives for the Disabled (ACRD) conference in Chicago on Tuesday evening.
«In the 90 years since Franklin Roosevelt created the Social Security system, people have always gotten their Social Security checks. They’ve gotten them during wartime, during recessions, during the pandemic. No matter what, they got them. But now, for the first time ever, that might change. It would be a calamity for millions of families, millions of people,» he added.
The ACRD conference was billed as the 46th president’s first public speech since leaving the White House. Biden, however, has delivered other public remarks since Jan. 20, Fox Digital found, including speaking before the National High School Model United Nations in March, which received little media attention, as well as joining an International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers event this month.
ACRD is an advocacy organization that works to equip «disability professionals with the tools, technology, and training to lead the industry forward,» according to its website.
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President Joe Biden speaks in the Roosevelt Room of the White House on Sept. 15, 2023. (Chris Kleponis/CNP/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Biden’s keynote address, which ran less than an hour, overwhelmingly focused on his accomplishments with Social Security when he was president, taking aim at how the Trump administration is allegedly keeping the elderly up at night with worry over their Social Security benefits, as well as cracking a few jokes about his decades in politics.
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Biden had a disastrous debate performance against Trump in 2024. (Getty Images)
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«Why are these guys taking aim at Social Security now?» Biden asked, referring to the Trump administration. «Well, they’re following that old line from tech startups. The quote is, ‘Move fast, break things.’ They’re certainly breaking things. They’re shooting first and aiming later.»
«The result is a lot of needless pain and sleepless nights,» Biden said.
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The Trump administration has cut about 7,000 Social Security Administration staffers since taking office as part of its mission to cut government fat and bureaucracy and realign agencies with «America First» policies. Democrats have slammed President Donald Trump over the cuts, claiming he will cut Social Security benefits to seniors.
The White House has repeatedly rejected claims that the Trump administration will cut such benefits, vowing to «always protect» Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid benefits.
President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden greet President-elect Donald Trump and Melania Trump at the White House on Jan. 20, 2025. (Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images)
Biden continued that the Trump administration is allegedly looking to «wreck» Social Security to «rob it.»
«My friend, [Maryland] Gov. [Martin] O’Malley, knows what they’re really up to. He says, and I love his quote, ‘They want to wreck it so they could rob it.’ They want to wreck it so they could rob it. Why do they want to rob it? In order to deliver huge tax cuts to billionaires and big corporations and keep it going. They want to make permanent the 2017 tax cuts, which overwhelmingly benefits the wealthiest Americans and the biggest corporations. That’s going to cost $5 trillion. Where are they going to get $5 trillion to pay for when they continue to run the deficit up?»
«What they always do … by running up the national debt, No. 1, then by taking the money from someplace else. What are the two big pots of money out there in raw numbers? Social Security and Medicaid. … Republicans, these guys are willing to hurt the middle class and the working class in order to deliver significant, greater wealth to their already very wealthy [friends]. Who in the hell do they think they are?» he said.
President Joe Biden is shown at the White House on Nov. 27, 2023. (Michael Reynolds/EPA/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Former Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., and former Democrat Social Security Administrator and Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley joined the event. O’Malley presented Biden with ACRD’s «beacon of hope award» for his accomplishments as president, including his leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic and fighting for the «dignity of every person.»
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Biden added that the nation is «divided» under Trump and can’t continue on the same path.
«We can’t go on like this as a divided nation, as divided as we are. I said, I’ve been doing this a long time, it’s never been this divided. Granted, it’s roughly 30%, but it’s a 30% that has no heart,» he continued.
The Trump administration’s official Social Security X account hit back after the speech that «Biden is lying to Americans» before providing a detailed list of «facts,» including that Trump has repeatedly pledged to protect benefits and that no field office has been closed since Jan. 20.
«SSA is taking commonsense steps to transform how we serve the public – last month, we spent $16.5 million to modernize telephone services nationwide. We’re developing cutting-edge, AI-powered tools to streamline simple tasks,» the thread continued. «SSA Inspector General report released while Joe Biden was President found $72 billion in improper payments from fiscal years 2015 through 2022.»
The event comes as political books investigating the 2024 campaign cycle hit the shelves, including «Uncharted: How Trump Beat Biden, Harris, and the Odds in the Wildest Campaign in History» and «FIGHT: Inside the Wildest Battle for the White House.»
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Excerpts from Chris Whipple’s «Uncharted» reported that White House staffers allegedly kept Biden from socializing with others, including close allies and friends, out of fear the 46th president «might say the wrong thing or might feed the mental acuity narrative.» He also appeared «absolutely exhausted» ahead of his ill-fated debate against Trump in June, according to the book, which opened the floodgates to public concern over Biden’s mental acuity as he tripped over his words and lost his train of thought during the debate.
President Joe Biden (Yuri Gripas/Abaca/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
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Biden has been spending his days in both Delaware and the nation’s capital since his Oval Office exit, with the 46th president working on his own book while also meeting with various Democratic Party leaders, NBC News reported in March.
Joe Biden,Social Security,Politics,Donald Trump,Chicago
INTERNACIONAL
Los abusos de los agentes de inmigración en Estados Unidos: corrupción, agresiones y abusos sexuales
Los investigadores dijeron que un agente de control de inmigración se salió con la suya al agredir físicamente a su novia durante años. Otro admitió que abusó sexualmente de una mujer bajo su custodia en repetidas ocasiones. Un tercero está acusado de aceptar sobornos para eliminar órdenes de detención sobre personas susceptibles de deportación.
Al menos dos docenas de empleados y contratistas del Servicio de Inmigración y Control de Aduanas de Estados Unidos (ICE, por sus siglas en inglés) han sido acusados de delitos desde 2020, y sus infracciones incluyen patrones de abuso físico y sexual, corrupción y otros abusos de autoridad, según una revisión realizada por The Associated Press.
Aunque la mayoría de los casos ocurrieron antes de que el Congreso votara el año pasado para otorgar al ICE 75.000 millones de dólares para contratar más agentes y detener a más personas, los expertos dicen que este tipo de delitos podría acelerarse dado el gran volumen de nuevos empleados y los poderes que se les han otorgado para usar tácticas agresivas en la detención y deportación de personas.
El gobierno de Trump ha envalentonado a los agentes al argumentar que tienen «inmunidad absoluta» por sus acciones en servicio y debilitar la supervisión. Un juez sugirió recientemente que el ICE estaba desarrollando una preocupante cultura de ilegalidad, mientras que los expertos han cuestionado si los nuevos empleados están recibiendo suficiente evaluación y capacitación.
“Una vez que una persona es contratada, incluida, pasa por la capacitación y no es la persona adecuada, es difícil deshacerse de ella y todos pagaremos un precio más adelante”, afirmó Gil Kerlikowske, quien sirvió como comisionado de Aduanas y Protección Fronteriza de Estados Unidos de 2014 a 2017.
Casi todas las agencias de seguridad lidian con malos empleados, y los delitos relacionados con la violencia doméstica y el abuso de sustancias son problemas arraigados en el sector. Pero el rápido crecimiento del ICE y su misión de deportar a millones de personas no tienen precedentes, y el análisis de AP encontró que el inmenso poder que los agentes ejercen sobre poblaciones vulnerables puede llevar a abusos.
La subsecretaria del Departamento de Seguridad Nacional, Tricia McLaughlin, dijo que la mala conducta no era generalizada en la agencia y que el ICE «se toma muy en serio las acusaciones de mala conducta por parte de sus empleados». Afirmó que la mayoría de los nuevos contratados ya habían trabajado para otras agencias de seguridad y que sus antecedentes fueron minuciosamente evaluados.
«Estados Unidos puede estar orgulloso del profesionalismo que nuestros agentes aportan al trabajo día tras día», expresó.
El ICE anunció el mes pasado que había más que duplicado su tamaño a 22.000 empleados en menos de un año.
Kerlikowske dijo que los agentes del ICE son particularmente «vulnerables a problemas de uso innecesario de la fuerza», dado que a menudo realizan operaciones en público mientras enfrentan protestas. El número de detenidos del ICE casi se ha duplicado desde el año pasado, a 70.000 personas, y los empleados y contratistas responsables de supervisarlos también enfrentan condiciones complicadas que pueden proporcionar más oportunidades para la mala conducta.
La Patrulla Fronteriza duplicó su tamaño a más de 20.000 agentes de 2004 a 2011, seis años más de lo que le tomó al ICE. La agencia se vio avergonzada por una ola de corrupción, abuso y otras infracciones por parte de algunos de los nuevos empleados. Kerlikowske recordó casos de agentes que aceptaron sobornos para permitir que autos que transportaban drogas ingresaran a Estados Unidos o que se involucraron en el tráfico de personas.
Él y otros dicen que el ICE está en posición de ver problemas similares que probablemente serán más amplios en alcance, con menos supervisión y rendición de cuentas.
«La corrupción, el abuso y la mala conducta estaban en gran medida confinados en la instancia anterior a lo largo de la frontera y las interacciones con inmigrantes y residentes de estados fronterizos. Con el ICE, esto se convertirá en un fenómeno a nivel nacional a medida que atraen a muchas personas que se sienten atraídas por esta misión», dijo David Bier, director de estudios de inmigración en el Instituto Cato, un grupo de expertos libertario.
Bier, quien ha ayudado a publicitar algunos de los arrestos recientes y otras presuntas malas prácticas de agentes del ICE, dijo que le ha sorprendido la «notable variedad de diferentes delitos y cargos que hemos visto».
El análisis de AP examinó registros públicos que involucran casos de empleados y contratistas del ICE que han sido arrestados desde 2020, incluidos al menos 17 que han sido condenados y otros seis que están esperando juicio. Nueve han sido acusados en el último año, incluido un agente procesado el mes pasado por agredir a un manifestante cerca de Chicago cuando estaba fuera de servicio.
Algunos de los delitos más graves fueron cometidos por empleados veteranos de ICE y supervisores en lugar de novatos.
Mientras que los funcionarios federales han justificado la agresión de ICE, el comportamiento de los agentes está atrayendo el escrutinio de observadores con celulares y fiscales en jurisdicciones lideradas por demócratas. Las agencias locales están investigando los tiroteos fatales del mes pasado en Minneapolis de los manifestantes Renee Good y Alex Pretti por parte agentes federales, así como el asesinato de Keith Porter por un agente de ICE fuera de servicio en Los Ángeles en la víspera de Año Nuevo.
En todo el país, los casos han atraído titulares no deseados para el ICE, que ha gastado millones de dólares publicitando los antecedentes penales de aquellos que arrestan como los «peores de los peores».
INTERNACIONAL
Trump directs military to strike new deals with coal-fired power plants: ‘Going to be buying a lot of coal’
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President Donald Trump signed an executive order Wednesday directing the Department of War (DOW) to work directly with coal-fired power plants on new long-term power purchasing agreements, arguing the move would ensure «more reliable power and stronger and more resilient grid power.»
«That’s why I’m also pleased to announce that, in just a moment, I will sign an executive order that directs the Department of War to work directly with coal plants on the new power purchasing agreements, ensuring that we have more reliable power and stronger and more resilient grid power,» Trump said.
«And we’re going to be buying a lot of coal through the military now, and it’s going to be less expensive and actually much more effective than what we have been using for many, many years.»
The executive order, «Strengthening United States National Defense with America’s Beautiful Clean Coal Power Generation Fleet,» states, «The United States must ensure that our electric grid … remains resilient and reliable, and not reliant on intermittent energy sources,» calling the grid «the foundation of our national defense as well as our economic stability.»
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Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum, left; House Speaker Mike Johnson; and EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin watch as President Donald Trump signs an executive order directing the military to purchase electricity from coal-fired power plants during a «Champion of Coal» event Wednesday at the White House in Washington, D.C. (Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images)
It adds, «It is the policy of the United States that coal is essential to our national and economic security.»
Under a section titled «Power Purchase Agreements with Federal Installations,» the order states that the Secretary of War, «in coordination with the Secretary of Energy, shall seek to procure power from the United States coal generation fleet by approving long-term Power Purchase Agreements … with coal-fired energy production facilities to serve DOW installations or other mission-critical facilities.»
Speaking at the White House and flanked by members of his Cabinet, coal workers and GOP lawmakers, Trump framed coal as vital to defense and industrial production.
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President Donald Trump speaks during a «Champion of Coal» event in the East Room of the White House Wednesday, in Washington, D.C. (Shawn Thew/EPA/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
«Coal is also critical to our national security,» he said. «Vital to everything from steel production to shipbuilding and artificial intelligence.»
He also pointed to winter storms as evidence of coal’s reliability.
«More than 200 million Americans across 35 states were impacted by the storm, and the only reason most were able to take a hot shower was thanks to the power provided by the most reliable, dependable of, and really dependable form of energy that we have,» Trump said. «And that’s clean, beautiful coal.»
Trump contrasted his approach with the prior administration.
«On day one of this administration, I ended the war on coal,» Trump said. «We terminated the green new scam, and we withdrew from the unfair, one-sided Paris climate accord.»
He also criticized wind energy.
TRUMP TO HOST ‘CLEAN BEAUTIFUL COAL’ EVENT, CALLS IT AMERICA’S MOST RELIABLE ENERGY
President Donald Trump speaks during a «Champion of Coal» event, where he ordered the Pentagon to purchase electricity from plants and announced millions of dollars to upgrade existing sites. (Graeme Sloan/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
«I’m not a big fan of those crazy windmills that are all made in China,» Trump said. «You know, they’re made in China but not used by China.»
Trump said the Tennessee Valley Authority was «taking action to save two major coal plants,» mentioning the Cumberland Fossil Plant and the Kingston Fossil Plant.
«These two plants were slated for termination,» Trump said, «but we’re going to save over 450 jobs by keeping them going and going strong.»
Trump said he was «directing the Department of Energy to issue funds» to coal plants in several states.
«In addition, I’m directing the Department of Energy to issue funds to coal plants in West Virginia, Ohio, North Carolina and Kentucky to keep them online and keep those plants open,» Trump said.
On permitting, Trump said, «In one year of Trump, we’ve already approved over 70 permits for very big, very powerful mines that are going to be with us for many, many years to come.»
Trump said coal production and generation had increased during his tenure.
«Since I took office, coal production is up by nearly 4 million tons a month after falling for decades,» he said. «Coal power generation is up by nearly 15% in my first year.»
Later in the event, Peabody Energy CEO Jim Grech presented Trump with an award.
«Sir. Just to show our appreciation,» Grech said. «The trophy says the undisputed champion of beautiful, clean coal.»
Trump closed by returning to what he described as American energy dominance.
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«America is now the No. 1 energy producer in the world,» he said. «We are by far No. 1.»
The Department of War did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
donald trump,energy,military,defense,politics
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UN chief blasted as ‘abjectly tone-deaf’ over message to Iran marking revolution anniversary
Trump, Netanyahu meet at White House amid Iran talks
Fox News’ Peter Doocy reports the latest on President Donald Trump’s meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Discussions cover Iran nuclear negotiations and the future ‘Board of Peace’ for Gaza.
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UNITED NATIONS: U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres sent a congratulatory message to Iran marking the anniversary of the 1979 Islamic revolution, a move that drew sharp criticism from anti-regime Iranian voices and human rights advocates.
In a letter addressed to Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Guterres «extended his warmest congratulations on the National Day of the Islamic Republic of Iran,» describing such anniversaries as an opportunity to reflect on a country’s path and contributions to the international community, according to Iranian state and regional reporting published Wednesday.
The message comes weeks after the U.N.’s top human rights body condemned Iran over abuses tied to a violent crackdown on anti-government protests and mandated further investigation into alleged violations, with some reports citing casualty figures that could reach 30,000, pending verification.
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U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres speaks at the 55th session of the Human Rights Council in Geneva, Switzerland, on Feb. 26, 2024. (Salvatore Di Nolfi/Keystone via AP)
Furthermore, according to the NGO U.N. Watch, Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, is expected to address the U.N. Human Rights Council on Feb. 23.
Against that backdrop, critics said the secretary-general’s congratulatory message risked sending a conflicting signal.
«The U.N. secretary-general’s congratulatory message is not merely diplomatic routine — it is abjectly tone-deaf,» said Iran analyst Banafsheh Zand. «At a time when the Iranian people continue to endure executions, repression and systemic abuse at the hands of the Islamic Republic, offering formal congratulations to the architects of that suffering reads as a moral failure.»
Zand added that such gestures «erode [the U.N.’s] credibility and deepen the wound for those still fighting for freedom inside Iran.»
Andrew Ghalili, policy director at the National Union for Democracy in Iran (NUFDI), said the message amounted to legitimizing a repressive system.
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Cars burn in a street during a protest over the collapse of the currency’s value in Tehran, Iran, Jan. 8, 2026. (Stringer/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via Reuters)
«The United Nations is legitimizing a regime built on repression, executions and the systematic destruction of basic freedoms,» Ghalili said. «Offering celebratory recognition to the Islamic Republic on the anniversary of its revolution ignores the bloodshed, the repression of protesters and the ongoing hostage-taking of innocent people.»
Human rights groups have repeatedly warned that impunity has enabled ongoing abuses in Iran, urging U.N. member states to pursue accountability for what they describe as systemic violations and mass killings of protesters.
Stéphane Dujarric, spokesperson for the secretary-general, told Fox News Digital during a press briefing that the message to Tehran was part of a long-standing U.N. protocol.
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Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi holds a joint press conference with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan in Istanbul, Turkey, on Jan. 30, 2026. (Arif Hudaverdi Yaman/Anadolu via Getty Images)
«The letter that came out from the secretary-general is a standard letter. Every year, each member state gets the exact same letter… congratulating them on the national holiday and conveying best wishes to the people of that country.»
The spokesperson added that similar letters were sent the same day to other countries marking national holidays and «should not be interpreted… as an endorsement of whatever policies may be put in place by the government.» He said the message «doesn’t change the secretary-general’s view» on Iran, noting Guterres has previously spoken out against the crackdown and violence.
On reports that Iran’s foreign minister is expected to address the Human Rights Council later this month, the spokesperson said the matter falls under the council’s authority.
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«That’s a decision of the Human Rights Council,» he said. «This is a membership organization. Every member state has a right to address legislative bodies… It’s not within the secretariat’s authority to bar member states from addressing a legislative body.»
united nations,secretary general,iran,world protests
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