From the Fall 2025 edition of The Prairie Progressive, Iowa’s oldest progressive newsletter. The PP is  funded entirely by reader subscription, available in hard copy for $15/yr.  Send check to PP, Box 1945, Iowa City 52244. Click here for archived issues

For nearly a century, Social Security has provided life sustaining economic security to
millions of Iowa families. That guarantee is now under serious threat. The Social Security Administration projects a 23 percent cut in monthly benefits In just seven short years,
unless Congress and the president act to fix the system—a problem that experts have warned about for decades.

The good news? There are pragmatic responsible solutions to keep Social Security solvent for generations to come. The bad news? Congress—currently controlled by Republicans—
is mired in chaos and dysfunction, unable or unwilling to make life more affordable for everyday Americans, let alone fix Social Security.

Social Security is funded by payroll taxes paid by workers. But only wages up to a certain amount are taxed. In 2025, the cap will be $176,100. Every dollar earned above that is exempt from Social Security taxes.

That cap is outdated and unfair. One obvious and necessary fix is to raise it—or eliminate the cap entirely for the highest earners. Another option would be to tax investment income
for wealthy taxpayers, who now contribute nothing to Social Security from their investment gains. The Internal Revenue Service estimates that U.S. millionaires and billionaires fail to pay roughly $150 billion every year in taxes they owe. Applying the
rule of law to these wealthy freeloading tax cheats could help strengthen Social Security.

Some argue for the opposite approach: cutting benefits. Their proposals include raising the retirement age (again), reducing payments for higher-income retirees, or slashing the benefits that working Americans have already earned.

In 2024, more than 700,000 Iowans—including children, people with disabilities, and 513,000 retirees— rely on their monthly Social Security checks. Those payments pump $1.3 billion each month into Iowa’s economy. The average retiree receives about $2,000 a month. A 23 percent cut in 2033 would slash more than $5,000 a year from each retiree’s income.

Let’s be clear—cutting benefits would push millions into poverty, destabilize families, and create a bleak future. Picture your parents or grandparents forced to move in with you because their checks no longer cover rent, household expenses, medical care, or food. Without new revenue or deep benefit cuts, the system will eventually buckle. That looks like the current plan—inaction as slow motion destruction.

Many Americans believe Social Security is too sacred for politicians to jeopardize. But if the past ten months have taught us anything, it’s that absolutely nothing is sacred anymore. Under initiatives like Project 2025 and DOGE, Republicans beholden to their billionaire oligarchs have vocally and aggressively embraced efforts to dramatically
shrink the federal government’s role in supporting many vital programs that ordinary Americans depend on. Social Security appears next on the chopping block.

Here in Iowa, our Republican congressional delegation—Zach Nunn, Ashley Hinson, Mariannette Miller-Meeks, Randy Feenstra, Chuck Grassley, and Joni Ernst — has
proposed zero reforms to save and strengthen Social Security. They refuse to consider any new revenue, period. Don’t take my word for it—ask them.

Democrats, for their part, know the math. Fixing Social Security requires more revenue. But too many are afraid to say it out loud, fearing nasty Republican attacks at even the
mention of a tax increase for wealthy Americans.

No one is coming to save Social Security unless we make them. Without a storm of activism—from MAGA voters, Democrats, Independents, and Republicans—Congress will continue to stall while the clock runs out. In legislative terms, 2033 is right around the corner. Americans deserve time to adjust to any changes that might come.

Social Security needs champions! People that can work across the aisle and are not afraid to speak the truth about long-term solutions. Who will step up and meet this challenge?

Social Security must be a top issue—not in 2033, not in 2028, but now. From now through the 2026 midterm elections, every federal candidate seeking our votes must answer two
simple questions:

What specific ideas do you support to fix Social Security? And will you make fixing Social Security now and for generations to come an urgent priority?

—Joe Bolkcom lives in Des Moines.