Bernie Sanders Mocks Musk: ‘Quite a Ponzi Scheme’ When Social Security Has Paid Every Nickel Owed to Eligible Americans

WELKER: “Well, let me ask you about Social Security. And you raise Elon Musk, senator, so let me follow up with you on this very point, because he’s made some very pointed comments about Social Security. I referenced it earlier in the broadcast. This was to Joe Rogan. I’d like you to hear it and get your reaction on the other side. Take a look.”

[Clip starts]
Musk: “Social Security is the biggest Ponzi scheme of all time. (...) Basically, people are living way longer than expected. And there are fewer babies being born. So you have more people who are retired and get — that live for a long time and get retirement payments, so there are future obligations. So, however — however bad the financial situation is right now for the federal government, it will be much worse in the future.”
[Clip ends]

WELKER: “Senator, President Trump says he’s not going to touch Social Security. Elon Musk calls it a Ponzi scheme. Do you agree?”
Sanders: “No, I think what Musk, the wealthiest guy in the world, just said is totally outrageous. That’s a hell of a Ponzi scheme when for the last 80 years, Social Security has paid out every nickel owed to every eligible American. Quite a Ponzi scheme. What is, in fact, a problem is that if we don’t make reforms and improve the funding mechanism over the next nine years, the Social Security trust fund, which provides about 20% of the funding, will go broke. So, what we have got to do, and I think most Americans agree, and I just introduced legislation to do that, is you lift the cap on taxable income. Right now, Musk, worth $400 billion, contributes the same amount into the Social Security trust fund as somebody making $170 million. You lift that cap, we can extend the solvency of Social Security for 75 years, and you can raise benefits. Kristen, right now in America, half of elderly people are trying to get by on $30,000 a year, 22% on $15,000 a year. We’ve got to raise Social Security benefits. We’ve got to expand Medicare to include hearing, dental, and vision, not go after these programs which are so important to millions of our seniors.”