Sheehy’s Social Security ad is irresponsible

Mr. Sheehy,

The following ad promoting demonstrably false and dangerous misinformation airing on Montana television paid for by the Tim Sheehy Campaign for U.S. Senate featuring Nora Fouhy of Billings has come to our attention. In the ad Ms. Fouhy makes the following statement:

“For 50 years I worked and paid into Social Security and Medicare. But Joe Biden and Democratic politicians have raided the Social Security and Medicare trust funds. Jon Tester is one of the worst. Tester supported huge cuts in Social Security while spending our money on benefits for illegal immigrants.”

“Our senators should put Montana Seniors first.” 

Tim Sheehy voice over: “I’m Tim Sheehy and I support this message.”

Big Sky 55+ respectfully calls on you to immediately cease and desist airing this dangerous misinformation. Thousands of Montanans rely on Social Security for all or a significant portion of their income. The gross misrepresentations put forth in your ad play political games with their livelihoods and their sense of well-being. It is reckless and irresponsible to distress and scare Montanans with patently false information that will bring them anxiety, worry and sleepless nights.

Social Security’s revenue, including its accumulated surplus of $2.7 trillion, is solely dedicated to Social Security. It can only be spent on Social Security benefits and related administrative costs. It is conservatively invested in Treasury securities that pay market interest rates and are as sound as all other U.S. government securities. The law requires that it be so invested, because U.S government securities are considered the safest investments in the world. They are backed by the full faith and credit of the United States. 

Every penny is carefully monitored and accounted for by around 40 actuaries at the Social Security Administration and their counterparts at the Department of the Treasury. 

You can see how the funds were invested at the end of 2022 and 2023, including par values, interest rates, and maturity dates, in the 2024 Trustees Report, released on May 7. 

The trustees purchase these interest-bearing bonds just as any other investor would and the bonds have the same legal status. They must be paid back with interest when presented or else the government would be in default. (The government has never defaulted on any of its bonds invested by anyone, including foreign adversaries.)

The investment interest is one of three sources of Social Security’s dedicated revenue, as it has been from the beginning. (The primary source is the Social Security contributions paid by workers and matched dollar-for-dollar by their employers, as required by the Federal Insurance Contributions Act.) Congress is prohibited from “raiding” Social Security’s accumulated reserve as it is from taking the reserves of private-sector pensions. 

Under federal code it is illegal for Social Security benefits to be awarded to undocumented workers. They pay FICA taxes but will never see those benefits. As a result, undocumented workers strengthen and prolong the solvency of the trust fund that stabilizes Social Security and Medicare benefits, as Social Security’s actuaries have analyzed.

There are bills in the House and the Senate that would expand benefits and protect and extend the trust fund through this century by requiring those with incomes of $400,000 or more to contribute at the same rate on all their income, just like working and middle-income workers contribute on their wages and salaries.

Terry Minow is chair of Big Sky 55+.