Billionaire Elon Musk, head of the Trump administration's Department of Government Efficiency, called Social Security the "biggest Ponzi scheme" in history during an interview with podcaster Joe Rogan last week.
Musk's comments came during a 3-hour plus interview on the "Joe Rogan Experience" on Friday. He was discussing solvency of the entitlement program, saying that the combination of falling birthrates and the increasing life expectancy is putting stress on the system.
"Social Security is the biggest Ponzi scheme of all time," Musk told Rogan.
"There are fewer babies being born," Musk said, adding, "and you have more people who are retired that live for a long time and get payments."
"We better fix what we've got right now, because if it's bad now, it's going to be much worse in the future," Musk continued.
President Donald Trump has vowed not to touch Social Security or Medicaid, asserting only that DOGE and his administration will continue to go after waste, fraud, and abuse in everything, including entitlement programs.
That was echoed by House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., who said Sunday that DOGE's efforts are focused on "fraud, waste, and abuse" regardless of the agency or program.
"Those are the kinds of efforts you're going to see in every agency of the federal government. And that is a great thing for American taxpayers and for the future of our country," Johnson said.
Regardless, Musk's comments came the same day that former Social Security Administration Commissioner and Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley warned that DOGE's cuts within the agency could have the same effect by terminating those who send out the checks.
"Ultimately, you're going to see the system collapse and an interruption of benefits," O'Malley told CNBC. "I believe you will see that within the next 30 to 90 days."
Musk also told Rogan that he could be killed for exposing too much "corruption stuff."
"I actually have to be careful that I don't push too hard on the corruption stuff, because it's going to get me killed," he told Rogan. "If I fully destroy the corruption and the graft, they will kill me."
Mark Swanson ✉
Mark Swanson, a Newsmax writer and editor, has nearly three decades of experience covering news, culture and politics.
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