At a town hall on Tuesday, Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) was asked about referring to Social Security as 'entitlements.'
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00:00I would like to ask about the cuts in SNAP benefits on the Farm Bill.
00:06Can you start over again?
00:07Yes, Senator Grassley, I would like to ask about any reduction in SNAP benefits that are going to be attached to the Farm Bill.
00:15I've heard there's been talk about them going back to pre-pandemic levels.
00:18I'd also like to know if you're planning on protecting the expansion of Medicaid benefits for Iowans under the ACA.
00:27If your answer is that possible, that that could happen, the answer is yes,
00:34because it's one of the things that's listed on the agenda as a possibility of saving money,
00:42but there's no certainty at this point that that's what's going to happen,
00:47and it's going to be part of the Farm Bill, and we haven't even started on the Farm Bill yet.
00:54I think she was asking if you are going to stand up for it.
00:58Are you going to support the cuts to the SNAP?
01:04Would you consider having, for able-bodied people, having work requirements?
01:10I work at a grocery store.
01:12I'd like to ask people.
01:14Would you give me your opinion on a question I have that would be important for me to hear your opinion?
01:20Would you consider a work requirement for able-bodied people 30 to 59 years old to be, and that would save money?
01:31Would you consider that wrong?
01:32No, that sounds like waste, fraud, and abuse.
01:35Okay.
01:35That sounds like waste, for sure.
01:38We're glad to hear that.
01:39I'm on a stable body.
01:40That you should.
01:41Yeah.
01:43They said it was going to cost more to oversee that program.
01:47Are you going to take me to the farm?
01:48Are you going to take me to the farm so they can afford to go to work?
01:51Okay, the next thing you hear is national security.
01:55Anybody?
01:57No, I've called on you.
01:58I don't know.
01:59Judge, I've got questions.
02:00There's one thing I think that you could do without having to introduce a bill or do anything else is to stand up for the people in this country.
02:10Yes.
02:10We all paid into our social securities.
02:13Our employers paid into it.
02:15We paid into Medicare.
02:17Stop the use of the word entitlement.
02:20That would be one step that if you just use the right language, this is not an entitlement.
02:27We're not getting this because we exist.
02:29We're getting it because of the faith we put in the country, the treasury, every legislator, that we would pay into our social security.
02:39We would have it when we retired.
02:41We paid into Medicare.
02:42All of our employers and self-employed people paid double.
02:48They paid the employer part.
02:50So, farmers, anybody who did this, so stop the use of the word entitlement because it's insulting to all of us.
02:59Earned benefit.
03:00Every single person elected to Congress should stop the use of that word and insist that it not be used.
03:08It's an earn.
03:10It's an earn.
03:10It's an earn.
03:10Yes.
03:1530 years old to 59 has to prove that they're working, that they're worth the benefits they get.
03:22But we can't talk about taxing the ultra-rich because we might be losing money on somebody that's getting food stamps in a town like this.
03:32Where are they going to work?
03:33How are they going to prove that they have a job and the transportation to go get a job?
03:39So, I think the general population is sick and tired of hearing about the tax cuts for the wealthy, the ultra-wealthy, the uber-rich, whatever you want to call them.
03:51When you start nitpicking about whether some single mom or single dad or somebody with somebody in prison is getting $70 too much food stamps, it doesn't even buy you anything at the grocery store.
04:03Mm-hmm.
04:04All right.
04:09If you're asking me if we're going to cut Social Security, no.
04:19And I wouldn't hope that you'd even worry about that when you have both Biden and Trump running the campaign that we're not going to cut Social Security.
04:32I ask if you could stop using the word entitlement, admit that we paid into it, and just fund it fully.
04:37And do whatever taxing you have to do at the top?
04:41Exactly.
04:42Yes.
04:43Yes.
04:44Yes.
04:45Why should somebody reach $200,000, $250,000 a year and say, I don't have to pay Social Security taxes on that anymore, when I have to pay it for every dime I ever earned, because I never earned over that.
04:55Mm-hmm.
04:56Okay.
04:57So fund Social Security...
04:58Raise a cap.
04:59Raise a cap.
05:00Okay.
05:01Get rid of black credit for related, Senator?
05:03Simple question.
05:04If she's asking me to not use the word entitlement, that's a pretty good request from any constituent.
05:15Okay.
05:16It's not privatizing it.
05:17Anybody here...
05:20Anybody here...