Former U.S. President Joe Biden launched a sharp attack on his successor Donald Trump on Tuesday in his first speech since leaving the White House on January 20.
Biden delivered remarks at a conference held in Chicago focusing on Social Security, the American retirement system, stating: “Look at what has happened: not even a hundred days have passed, and this new administration has caused a lot of damage and destruction.”
The 82-year-old accused the Trump administration of targeting the Social Security Administration, the federal agency responsible for distributing pensions and disability benefits to 68 million people.
He explained: “They are attacking Social Security with an axe by laying off 7,000 employees, many of whom have long experience. They intend to push thousands more to leave.”
He continued: “Why do they want to plunder it? To provide massive tax cuts to billionaires.”
His speech included moments of distraction, to the extent that he did not complete some of the jokes he intended to make.
Trump, who is known for mocking his predecessor, did not hesitate to share clips from the speech on his platform, Truth Social, without any accompanying commentary.
The former president stated, “Social Security deserves protection for the sake of the whole nation,” noting that “it is not just about pensions, but about respecting the fundamental bond of trust between the state and the people.”
In February, the Trump administration temporarily appointed a “fraud expert” as head of the Social Security Administration.
Billionaire Elon Musk, who was tasked by Trump to reduce government spending, asserts that many fraudulent activities undermine the operations of Social Security, especially with millions of beneficiaries over the age of 100, without providing detailed public data.
