“Hogan has repeatedly flirted with the idea of cutting Social Security and Medicare”
Republican Larry Hogan has repeatedly said all federal programs including Medicare and Social Security “should be on the chopping block,” according to new reporting by American Journal News. Hogan – who’s said he’s open to supporting Senator Rick Scott, architect of Senate Republicans’ plan to sunset Medicare and Social Security, for Senate GOP Leader – could be the 51st seat Republicans need to take control of the Senate and push forward an extreme agenda that includes gutting Medicare and Social Security.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT.
American Journal News: Hogan’s Unclear Social Security Position Could Decide Maryland Senate Race
By Jesse Valentine
- Former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan has repeatedly flirted with the idea of cutting Social Security and Medicare. It could become a liability in his campaign for the U.S. Senate.
- [Hogan] he has repeatedly said that all federal programs should be on the chopping block and frequently qualifies his remarks about protecting Social Security. This is the case on his current campaign website which calls for protecting benefits only for those close to retirement.
- From 2020 to 2023, Hogan served as co-chair of No Labels, a political organization that claims to advocate for centrist policy positions. Under Hogan’s leadership, the group drafted a platform for the 2024 presidential election that… did not rule out cuts.
- Earlier in 2023, No Labels endorsed a U.S. Senate proposal to raise the retirement age to 70. An estimated 18 million Americans aged 65 to 69 currently receive Social Security benefits.
- Hogan endorsed former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley. During her campaign, Haley advocated for raising the retirement age and, as governor, supported means-testing Social Security benefits.
- In August, Hogan held a fundraiser with former Speaker of the House Paul Ryan. In 2010, as the ranking Republican on the House Budget Committee, Ryan authored a policy… [that] sought to privatize large portions of Social Security and replace Medicare with a voucher system… [and] result in a 28% cut to Social Security by 2080 and put the program on track to be insolvent by 2040.
- Hogan is a close ally of former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and endorsed Christie’s 2016 presidential campaign. In that campaign, Christie proposed sweeping cuts to Social Security, including raising the retirement age to 69 and means testing benefits. In a 2020 radio interview, Hogan described Christie as a “mentor.”
- An AARP poll from August found that 52% of older voters in Maryland rely on, or expect to rely on, Social Security as a major source of income. Additionally, 79% of respondents indicated that a candidate’s stance on Social Security is “very or extremely important” to them.
###