MAGA threats to Social Security may have been a gift to Democrats.

My art is on Instagram @klonskyart.

Last night Arizona went blue and the Democrats are just a Nevada away from holding the Senate.

Republican gains in the House are yet to be determined. No matter the results in the remaining congressional races, their likely majority won’t be by much.

The polls and the pundits got it very wrong.

Again.

The Democrats made abortion rights and threats to democracy their issue.

But the MAGA Party didn’t help themselves with their late minute suggestion that if they got congressional control they would cut Social Security benefits.

Which, by the way, are pitiful already.

My 65 and older demographic are not a solid voting block by any means. They often are swing voters.

But threats to Social Security and Medicare are a big deal and I believe they were a contributor to the MAGA’s poor showing.

Several conservative Republicans vying to lead key economic committees in the House have suggested publicly that they would back efforts to change eligibility for the safety net programs. The conservative Republican Study Committee in the House, which is poised to assume a position of influence if the party claims the majority, has issued a detailed plan that would raise the retirement age for both programs and reduce Social Security benefits for some higher-earning retirees. The plan would increase premiums for many older adults and create a new marketplace where a government Medicare plan competes with a private alternative, in what many Democrats call partial privatization of the program. (NYT)

The Republicans showing their cards on Social Security and Medicare may have been an unforced error in that Biden and the Democrats are pitiful defenders of both.

Biden has endorsed the Trump plan for senior healthcare that would move retirees to a privatized Medicare Advantage program without our consent.

No one should be surprised the Trump administration hatched a plan to put private insurance companies in charge of Medicare. What’s shocking is how President Joe Biden is moving forward with it.

The 50-year-old, government-operated health program for the elderly will slowly and irrevocably end up managed by for-profit insurers under the Global and Professional Direct Contracting Model. The Center for Medicare Services says the program will increase “access to innovative, affordable care while maintaining all original Medicare benefits.”

Wall Street expects it will generate billions in new dividends for health care companies. Critics warn seniors will find it harder to obtain care, and taxpayers will end up paying more than ever.

Plus current Social Security benefits barely exceed the poverty level.

The Center for Retirement Research at Boston College estimates that this worker could have expected a 36% income replacement rate in 2015 (after Medicare Part B premiums and income taxes), but only 29% if claiming in 2035.

I’m thinking the Democrats have nothing to be proud of on Social Security and Medicare, even as we may temporarily have dodged a Republican bullet that would make it worse.