Perry cheered Trump’s “Department of Government Efficiency” and even thought it wasn’t enough. Perry believed that “every single component of the government” should be on the table for cuts. Meanwhile, DOGE-driven cuts and downsizing were affecting the federal government’s ability to deliver services to seniors. More than 169,000 Pennsylvanians in Perry’s district relied on Social Security benefits.
Perry has even previously supported raising the Social Security retirement age.
January 2025: Perry Said “Every Single Component Of The Government” Was On The Table For Cuts. According to Fox 43, "Perry also believes that further tax cuts should be offset by spending cuts. ‘If you're going to do that and pay for the government, you have to pay for whatever level the government is using, and the government is using too much,’ Perry said. ‘When we're going to cut taxes or maintain the tax cuts that we have, we're going to have to right-size that spending.’ When it comes to spending cuts, Perry says everything is on the table. ‘We need to look at every single component of the government,’ Perry said. ‘I would start out immediately with the EV mandate. We don't need the federal government telling us what kind of cars to buy and then subsidizing them. Everybody has to be willing to take a look at everything. You think about the Pentagon. I served in uniform for over three decades. The Pentagon hasn't passed an audit since it's since its inception, so there is waste and abuse there.’" [Fox 43, 1/9/25]
Perry Said DOGE Cuts Were “Not Enough.” According to Axios, "Elon Musk's slash-and-burn approach is giving the White House genuine street cred with House conservatives. But it might not be enough to compensate for the outrage he's provoked among House Democrats. Why it matters: If Democrats hold the line — and withhold their votes to fund the government — it will be exceedingly difficult for House Speaker Mike Johnson to avoid a government shutdown. Musk is flipping the traditional equation, in which Democrats vote to fund the government and Republicans feel compelled to do so under duress. While not all Democrats are on board with holding the government hostage to their anti-DOGE demands, many are clearly contemplating it. Zoom in: For all the outraged Democrats that Johnson might lose because of Musk, he'll be on the hunt for Republican votes to replace them. ‘It helps,’ said Rep. Ralph Norman (R-S.C.). ‘However, the baseline needs to be intact at $2 trillion,’ he added, referring to how much spending he wants to cut in the (separate) reconciliation bill. ‘That's just additional,’ said Rep. Scott Perry (R-Pa.). ‘We appreciate it, but that's not enough.’" [Axios, 2/12/25]
March 2025: Perry Said It “Would Be Awesome” To Codify DOGE Cuts Into The Federal Budget. According to The Hill, "Rep. Scott Perry (R-Pa.) signaled openness to a continuing resolution, saying it will ‘probably save us some money,’ but adding: ‘Especially if you put some DOGE curds in it, it would be awesome.’ Asked if he would support the stopgap without DOGE cuts, Perry responded: ‘It depends on what else it looks like.’” [The Hill, 3/4/25]
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]
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]
169,824 Pennsylvanians In The 10th Congressional District Relied On Social Security Benefits. According to the Social Security Administration, in 2024, 169,824 Pennsylvanians in the 10th congressional district received Social Security benefits. [Social Security Administration, Pennsylvania, 2024]
2016: Perry Called To Raise The Social Security Retirement Age To 69-Years-Old. According to Scott Perry’s 2016 congressional campaign website viewed via archive.org, "Social Security provides critical financial support to more than 56 million beneficiaries, to include widow/ers and people w/disabilities. Social Security is funded by the payroll taxes of current employees to pay the benefits of current retirees. The Social Security Board of Trustees estimates that by 2035 the Social Security Trust Fund will be depleted; when that happens, beneficiaries would face a painful 23% cut. Likewise, the Social Security Disability Insurance program is expected to exhaust its trust fund in 2016 – potentially triggering a 21% cut in benefits. I propose a combined mix of benefit reductions and tax increases. We must increase the cap on payroll taxes from the current $118,500 level, move from the current CPI-U to CPI-W, increase the retirement age to 69, and means test the benefit. Several legislative proposals are being drafted, but the final version should contain these provisions to be effective and ensure the solvency of Social Security for generations to come." [Scott Perry For Congress, Viewed 10/19/16 via archive.org]
2024: Perry Said Raising The Retirement Age Could Be On The Table To Address Social Security. According to a PA-10 general election congressional debate, "MODERATOR: Thank you. Democrats are saying Republicans intend to either cut benefits or she just mentioned increase the retirement age. Would you do either 15 seconds? PERRY: It's going to take a bipartisan solution. Both sides are going to have to give. You can see that in 2016. It was a long time ago, but we were talking about changing benefits for beneficiaries or people that were about to be beneficiaries. It was going to have to start much earlier than that. You're going to have to be willing to compromise. MODERATOR: Lastly, so we might be raising the retirement age? PERRY: It might be part of the compromise right there." [PA-10 General Election Congressional Debate, 10/8/24] (video)