Social Security Cuts Target Trump Voters
Rural, white areas hit by trade rely most on federal disability benefits.
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As a candidate, Donald Trump set himself apart from other Republicans by promising to protect entitlement spending. “I’m not going to cut Social Security like every other Republican,” Trump said just before entering the presidential race. “I have a big heart.”
His recently released budget, however, shows that as president he’s had a change of heart: It cuts almost $70 billion from Social Security disability benefits over the next decade. Those cuts will fall on some of his staunchest supporters. Of the 20 counties with the highest share of working-age adults receiving disability benefits, 17 voted for Trump, by an average margin of 56 percentage points.