Mother Jones Says $2.8 Trillion Social Security Gap Could Be Closed by Tax Break Cuts
Updated
Updated · Mother Jones · Jun 19
Mother Jones Says $2.8 Trillion Social Security Gap Could Be Closed by Tax Break Cuts
2 articles · Updated · Mother Jones · Jun 19
Summary
A projected $2.8 trillion Social Security shortfall from 2032 to 2036 is framed as a policy choice, not an unavoidable crisis, because Congress could replace the funding with changes to tax breaks.
The report points to several large offsets: $1.25 trillion from taxing investment gains like wages, $390 billion from ending the qualified business income deduction, and $379.3 billion from scrapping the step-up in basis rule.
It also highlights broader tax subsidies that dwarf the gap, including $2.3 trillion in retirement-savings tax breaks for 2025-2029 and more than $574 billion tied to home-sale and mortgage-interest preferences.
That argument is set against other fiscal choices, including an estimated $4.5 trillion revenue loss over a decade from Trump's tax bill and a proposed 50% rise in the U.S. military budget to $1.5 trillion.
The piece says the 2032 funding deadline reflects aging demographics, lower immigration and the payroll-tax cap at $184,500, but contends lawmakers could avoid benefit cuts by shifting priorities away from high-income households.