FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, January 24th, 2017

Contact:

Linda Benesch,  lbenesch@socialsecurityworks.org

Trump Must Withdraw Price and Mulvaney Nominations

(Washington, DC) — The following is a statement from Alex Lawson, Executive Director of Social Security Works, in reaction to Tom Price’s and Mick Mulvaney’s confirmation hearings today:

“Donald Trump made protecting Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid a centerpiece of his presidential campaign. As recently as yesterday, Press Secretary Sean Spicer reiterated that promise. But at today’s confirmation hearings for Health and Human Services Nominee Tom Price and Office of Management and Budget nominee Mick Mulvaney, both men made it clear they had no intention of going along with that promise.

Price refused to renounce his support for cutting Medicare by $449 billion and Medicaid by $1 trillion. Due to that horrific record and serious accusations of insider trading, Social Security Works delivered petitions from over 35,000 Americans to the Senate Finance Committee stating that not only should Price’s nomination be voted down, he should be under criminal investigation.

Mulvaney went even further, explicitly endorsing benefit cuts including raising the eligibility ages for Social Security and Medicare and saying that he would pressure Trump to break his pledge not to cut them. Is Trump willing to betray the American people and be a pathetic puppet for his own nominees and Paul Ryan? If not, he needs to prove it by withdrawing these horrific nominations immediately. If he does not take this step, the Senate must vote them down.”

Social Security Works Executive Director Alex Lawson delivers petitions to the Senate Finance Committee.