¶ Overview
Bresnahan also promised to protect Social Security. Then, he claimed the Trump administration was taking care of America despite acknowledging he had to clean up some of the “Department of Government Efficiency’s” messes. He even dumped his Tesla stock at the height of DOGE’s chaos. DOGE-driven cuts and downsizing were affecting the federal government’s ability to deliver services to seniors. More than 193,000 Pennsylvanians in Bresnahan’s district relied on Social Security benefits.
¶ Bresnahan Defended DOGE, Which Has Forced Mass Layoffs And Reduced Services At The Social Security Administration
¶ Bresnahan Defended the Trump Administration, Claiming It Was “Tak[ing] Care of America” and “Being Fiscally Responsible”
Bresnahan: “There's Some Things That Come Out Of You Know, Out Of Pennsylvania Avenue That Just Happen.” According to an interview Rob Bresnahan gave on the Sue Henry Show, “BRESNAHAN: I have family members that work for Steamtown. You know, I have family members that work in the Social Security Administration. One of my best friend's wife works for the SSA. And, you know, these are dedicated people that care about their country and their jobs. And, you know, there's some things that come out of you know, out of Pennsylvania Avenue that just happen. But at the end of the day here, we try to do and clarify different situations, different challenges.” [The Sue Henry Show, 2/26/25] (audio)
Bresnahan: “Everything Donald Trump Said He Was Going To Do On The Campaign Trail Is Exactly What He's Doing.” According to an interview Rob Bresnahan gave on the Chuck Volpe show, “BRESNAHAN: 77 million people voted for Donald Trump. The House of Representatives received the highest level of votes ever, and that's because people were ready for a change. People are frustrated with what was- what we were being called. And Donald Trump brought a totally different perspective. And here's what's remarkable. Everything Donald Trump said he was going to do on the campaign trail is exactly what he's doing.” [Chuck Volpe Report, 2/17/25] (video)
- Bresnahan: “The Golden Goose Is Sick. It's Going To Stop Laying Golden Eggs. We Have To Take Care Of America. And That's Exactly What The [Trump] Administration Is Doing. That's Exactly What House Republicans Are Doing.” According to an interview Rob Bresnahan gave on the Volpe Report, “BRESNAHAN: They want fiscal responsibility. They are sick and tired of being put second. We, I said on my campaign trail, the golden goose is sick. It's going to stop laying golden eggs. We have to take care of America. And that's exactly what the administration is doing. That's exactly what House Republicans are doing.” [The Volpe Report, 3/9/25] (audio)
¶ Bresnahan Acknowledged That he has had to step in to try to clean up the trump administration’s messes in his district
Bresnahan Acknowledged That His Office Had Had To Step In To “Clarify Different Situations, Different Challenges” That Had Come Out Of The Trump Administration That Affected His District. According to an interview Rob Bresnahan gave on the Sue Henry Show, “BRESNAHAN: I have family members that work for Steamtown. You know, I have family members that work in the Social Security Administration. One of my best friend's wife works for the SSA. And, you know, these are dedicated people that care about their country and their jobs. And, you know, there's some things that come out of you know, out of Pennsylvania Avenue that just happen. But at the end of the day here, we try to do and clarify different situations, different challenges.” [The Sue Henry Show, 2/26/25] (audio)
- Trump Administration Fired Five National Park Service Employees At A Scranton, PA Museum That Contributed More Than $5 Million To Local Economy And Supported 84 Jobs In 2017. According to WVIA Public Media, "The Cheseks were heartbroken to learn that five park employees were abruptly fired as part of National Park Service (NPS) cuts imposed by the Trump administration, and worry about what that could mean for Steamtown's future. [...] the museum was established in 1986 'to preserve, interpret and protect the history of steam railroading in America,' as its website states. Developed around a private collection that was moved from Vermont, the facility formally opened as a National Historic Site on July 1, 1995. [...] A 2017 National Park Service report showed that 99,600 visitors to Steamtown National Historic Site in 2016 spent $5,403,500 in communities near the park. That spending supported 86 jobs in the local area and had a cumulative benefit to the local economy of $7,432,400, the report added." [WVIA Public Media, 2/21/25]
¶ February & March 2025: Bresnahan Sold Shares Of His Tesla Stock Worth At Least $1,000 Each
2/27/25 & 3/6/25: Bresnahan Sold Shares Of His Tesla Stock Each Worth Between $1,001 And $15,000. According to a periodic transaction report filed by Rep. Rob Bresnahan,
[Rep. Rob Bresnahan, Periodic Transaction Report, 3/27/25]
- April 2025: Tesla Announced A 13 Percent Drop In Quarterly Sales While Musk Was Set To Leave His Role As Chief Of DOGE. According to Politico, “As the sun rose today, Musk’s company, Tesla, announced a 13 percent drop in quarterly sales — the firm’s largest plunge ever, underperforming analysts’ already-bleak estimates. Much of Musk’s vast wealth comes from Tesla, a stock market wunderkind which, in the 15 years since its initial public offering, has exploded into one of the most valuable companies in history. But its valuation has plummeted since the election, driven in no small part by Musk’s controversial role in the White House. That, too, looks like it’s coming to an end. The DOGE chief, who has jubilantly barreled through the federal bureaucracy since Trump took office, is staring down a late May or early June deadline, after which his ‘special government employee’ designation will mandate he cease his work.” [Politico, 4/2/25]
- April 2025: Amid Low Approval Ratings On How Musk Was Handling His Work At DOGE, The White House Reported It Would Not Try To Extend Musk’s Time At The Department. According to Politico, “Against a backdrop of Musk’s low favorability ratings, reported tiffs with Cabinet secretaries and the Wisconsin loss — which Democrats, and Musk himself, framed as a referendum on the billionaire — Trump has informed his inner circle that Musk will retreat after his status terminates, our RACHAEL BADE reports. It’s a reversal from just a month ago, when White House officials were prepared to find a way around the 130-day limit. And to rub salt in the wound, a new poll released today out of Milwaukee-based Marquette University found approval of how Musk is handling his work at DOGE stands at 41 percent, with disapproval at 58 percent, our ALI BIANCO reports. Musk’s personal favorability, the poll found, is 38 percent, with 60 percent of respondents viewing him unfavorably.” [Politico, 4/2/25]
¶ August 2024: Bresnahan Reported That He Held Tesla Stock Worth At Least $15,000
August 2024: Bresnahan Reported Holding Tesla Stock Worth Between $15,001 And $50,000. According to a personal financial disclosure filed by Rep. Rob Bresnahan,
[Rep. Rob Bresnahan, Personal Financial Disclosure, Filed 8/13/24]
- Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Reported Bresnahan Owned, Bought And Sold Shares Of Private And Public Companies Rather Than Investing In Investment Funds. According to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, "While some incoming lawmakers invest only in widely held investment funds to reduce the possibility of conflicts of interest, many others — including Rep.-elect Rob Bresnahan, R-Pa., and Sen.-elect Dave McCormick, R-Pa. — own, buy and sell shares of private and public companies." [Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 1/2/25]
¶ 2025: At The Social Security Administration, DOGE Had Forced Mass Layoffs, Longer Wait Times, And Frequent Website Crashes
HEADLINE: "Social Security Stops Reporting Call Wait Times And Other Metrics" [Washington Post, 6/20/25]
HEADLINE: "As Social Security Services Are Cut Back, Millions Of Seniors Face Long Drives" [Axios, 6/8/25]
HEADLINE: "Social Security Website Keeps Crashing, As DOGE Demands Cuts To IT Staff" [Washington Post, 4/7/25]
HEADLINE: "Social Security Faces Thousands More Job Cuts Even With Service In Tailspin" [Washington Post, 4/4/25]
CBPP Said The Trump Administration Had Pushed Out 7,000 Social Security Workers. According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, "Over the past five months, the Trump Administration has forced the Social Security Administration (SSA) through a radical transformation that threatens to disrupt services for the largely older and severely disabled people who most rely on the agency.[1] The Trump Administration and its so-called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) have created huge gaps in customer service and support by indiscriminately pushing out 7,000 workers to hit an arbitrary staffing reduction target. This is the largest staffing cut in SSA’s history.[2] (See Figure 1.)" [Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, 6/23/25]
The Social Security Administration Website Crashed Four Times In Ten Days In March Because Servers Were Overloaded. According to the Washington Post, "The Social Security Administration website crashed four times in 10 days this month because the servers were overloaded, blocking millions of retirees and disabled Americans from logging in to their online accounts. In the field, office managers have resorted to answering phones in place of receptionists because so many employees have been pushed out. Amid all this, the agency no longer has a system to monitor customer experience because that office was eliminated as part of the cost-cutting efforts led by Elon Musk. And the phones keep ringing. And ringing." [Washington Post, 3/25/25]
Field Office Managers At Social Security Offices Had To Answer Phones In Place Of Receptionists Because DOGE Had Pushed Out So Many Federal Employees. According to the Washington Post, "The Social Security Administration website crashed four times in 10 days this month because the servers were overloaded, blocking millions of retirees and disabled Americans from logging in to their online accounts. In the field, office managers have resorted to answering phones in place of receptionists because so many employees have been pushed out. Amid all this, the agency no longer has a system to monitor customer experience because that office was eliminated as part of the cost-cutting efforts led by Elon Musk. And the phones keep ringing. And ringing." [Washington Post, 3/25/25]
DOGE Eliminated The Social Security Administration’s System To Monitor Customer Experience. According to the Washington Post, "The Social Security Administration website crashed four times in 10 days this month because the servers were overloaded, blocking millions of retirees and disabled Americans from logging in to their online accounts. In the field, office managers have resorted to answering phones in place of receptionists because so many employees have been pushed out. Amid all this, the agency no longer has a system to monitor customer experience because that office was eliminated as part of the cost-cutting efforts led by Elon Musk. And the phones keep ringing. And ringing." [Washington Post, 3/25/25]
Early February-Late March 2025: AARP Said More Than 2,000 People Per Week Had Called Expressing Concerns About Whether They Would Continue To Get Their Social Security Benefits. According to the Washington Post, "Alarmed lawmakers are straining to answer questions back home from angry constituents. Calls have flooded into congressional offices. AARP announced Monday that more than 2,000 people a week have called the retiree organization since early February — double the usual number — with concerns about whether benefits they paid for during their working careers will continue. Social Security is the primary source of income for about 40 percent of older Americans." [Washington Post, 3/25/25]
¶ More Than 193,000 Pennsylvanians In The Eighth Congressional District Relied On Social Security Benefits
2024: 193,172 Pennsylvanians In The 8th Congressional District Relied On Social Security Benefits. According to the Social Security Administration, in 2024, 193,172 Pennsylvanians in the 8th congressional district received Social Security benefits. [Social Security Administration, Pennsylvania, 2024]
¶ February 2025: Bresnahan Spread False DOGE Talking Points About Social Security Payments
February 2025: Bresnahan Claimed 185 Year-Olds Were Still Receiving Social Security Benefits. According to an interview Rob Bresnahan gave on the Rob O’Donnell Show, “BRESNAHAN: I am one hundred percent for getting rid of fraud or of the hundreds of the same Social Security number that are receiving the same, you know, the same benefits, or the people that are 185 years old that are currently still receiving our benefit programs, like, of course, we want to eradicate that.” [Rob O’Donnell Show, 2/19/25] (audio)
¶ February 2025: Department Of Government Efficiency Falsely Claimed 150-Year Olds Were Collecting Social Security Benefits
HEADLINE: "No, 150-Year-Olds Aren’t Collecting Social Security Benefits" [Wired, 2/17/25]
February 2025: Department Of Government Efficiency Claimed 150 Year-Olds Were Claiming Social Security Benefits. According to Wired, "Elon Musk has repeatedly claimed that his so-called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) project had uncovered massive government fraud when it alleged that 150-year-olds were claiming Social Security benefits. But Musk has provided no evidence to back up his claims, and experts quickly pointed out that this is very likely just a quirk of the decades-old coding language that underpins the government payment systems." [Wired, 2/17/25]
The Social Security Administration Used The Old Coding Language COBOL Which Experts Said Defaulted To A May 20, 1875 Reference Date When Birth Date Data Values Were Missing, Leading To An Age Of 150 Being Shown. According to Wired, "Computer programmers quickly claimed that the 150 figure was not evidence of fraud but rather the result of a weird quirk of the Social Security Administration’s benefits system, which was largely written in COBOL, a 60-year-old programming language that undergirds SSA’s databases as well as systems from many other US government agencies. COBOL is rarely used today, and as such, Musk’s cadre of young engineers may well be unfamiliar with it. Because COBOL does not have a date type, some implementations rely instead on a system whereby all dates are coded to a reference point. The most commonly used is May 20, 1875, as this was the date of an international standards-setting conference held in Paris, known as the Convention du Mètre. These systems default to the reference point when a birth date is missing or incomplete, meaning all of those entries in 2025 would show an age of 150." [Wired, 2/17/25]
As Of September 2015, On A Monthly Basis, The Social Security Administration Automatically Terminated Social Security Benefits For People 115 Years-Old Or Older. According to the Social Security Administration’s Program Operations Manual System and Wired, "Effective September 2015, the Social Security Administration (SSA) implemented an automated process in which the Regular Transcript Attainment and Selection Pass (RETAP) application selects records for which the Title II beneficiary is: • Age 115 or older; • In any current continuous suspense for seven years or more; and • Entitled on a record where there are no other beneficiaries in a non-terminated status younger than the age of 115. The Title II Redesign (T2R) system automatically selects and terminates entitlement to beneficiaries meeting the criteria in this section on a monthly basis using Ledger Account File (LAF) T9 and Reason for Suspension or Termination (RFST) of AGETRM." [Social Secuirty Administration, Program Operations Manual System, "GN 02602.578 Termination of Entitlement for Title II Beneficiaries Who are Age 115 or Older," 10/28/22; Wired, 2/17/25]
¶ July 2024: Incorrect Payments From The Social Security Administration Accounted For Less Than One-Percent Of All Benefit Payouts, With Most Being Overpayments To Living People
HEADLINE: "Tens Of Millions Of Dead People Aren’t Getting Social Security Checks, Despite Trump And Musk Claims" [Associated Press, 2/19/25]
July 2024: The Social Security Administration’s Inspector General Found Less Than One-Percent Of Payments Were Improper, With Most Incorrect Payments Being Overpayments To Living People. According to the Associated Press, "A July 2024 report from Social Security’s inspector general states that from fiscal years 2015 through 2022, the agency paid out almost $8.6 trillion in benefits, including $71.8 billion — or less than 1% — in improper payments. Most of the erroneous payments were overpayments to living people." [Associated Press, 2/19/25]