 So we just recently learned that Donald Trump's administration wants to cut off food stamps for almost 700,000 Americans, people who desperately need food stamps. We'll be losing access to that because this administration wants to save a few billion dollars, even though we just increased defense spending again. But it hasn't even been a month and Donald Trump's administration is already setting their sights on another social program that they want to cut. This time it is Social Security Disability. And as Jake Johnson of Common Dreams reports, activists are working to raise public awareness and outrage over a little-noticed Trump administration proposal that could strip life-saving disability benefits from hundreds of thousands of people by further complicating the way the Social Security Administration determines who is eligible for payments. The proposed rule was first published in the Federal Register last month but has received scarce attention in the national media. Last week the Social Security Administration extended the public comment period on the proposal until January 31, 2020. Alex Lawson, Executive Director of the Progressive Advocacy Group Social Security Works told Common Dreams that the rule change is the Trump Administration's most brazen attack on Social Security yet. When Ronald Reagan implemented a similar benefit cut, it ripped away the earned benefits of 200,000 people, Lawson said. Ultimately, Reagan was forced to reverse his attack on Social Security after massive public outcry but not before people suffered and died. Patient Advocate Peter Morley, who lobbies Congress on healthcare issues, called the proposal a national disgrace. This is not over, said Morley. We will all need to mobilize. So, I just want to pause for a moment. There's a little bit more to this story but I want to reflect on this and the implications. Donald Trump is stripping away Social Security Disability Insurance, not directly, but the way that he's doing this is in a more covert way. It's death by a thousand cuts, essentially. This is how they dismantle a lot of public programs. What he's trying to do is make the eligibility a little bit more stringent, make people jump through a few more hoops, and if he's able to accomplish this, then he'll be able to pull off what he ultimately wants to pull off, which is to get less people this help that they need. Have less people qualify for this program. It's the same thing that we see when it comes to voter ID laws, right? Even though Republicans want people to not vote, and I'm sure that they'd love to just directly take away the right to vote for a lot of people, but they can't do that because it's illegal, and it would of course be massively unpopular. So what do they do instead? They try to undermine that program to reach the same result. They implement these voter ID laws that ends up disproportionately hurting people of color in poor communities, and this leads to people not being able to vote if they wanted to. It doesn't affect everyone, but it cuts down the amount of people that vote. So essentially, you implement this policy by being a nuanced troll, saying, well, you know, I'm not actually trying to get people off of this program. I'm just introducing a couple of other requirements. I mean, everyone has an ID, right? So it should be easy if you want to vote, you know? Just present your ID, and then you'll be able to vote. But this is all just a trick, right? It's a red herring. They will say that something else is an issue, but really, they're hiding behind their ultimate goal, which is to undermine voters and people, and oftentimes, you know, strip away voting rights, and in this instance, cut a crucial benefit that people need. Not necessarily cut, technically, but, you know, have less people qualify for said benefit. Now, for those of you who are unaware with Social Security disability, eligibility is a huge part of the program. People are forced to prove that they still qualify for this, and Jake Johnson kind of lays this out a little bit more in this article. The process for receiving Social Security disability insurance and supplemental security income is already notoriously complicated, and the Trump administration is attempting to add yet another layer of complexity that critics say is aimed at slashing people's benefits. The Philadelphia Inquirer reported last week those already receiving disability benefits are subject to so-called continuing disability reviews, which determine whether they are still deserving of compensation for an injury, illness, or other incapacitating problem as their lives progress. Currently, beneficiaries are placed in three separate categories based on the severity of their disability. Medical improvement not expected, medical improvement expected, and medical improvement possible. People with more severe medical conditions face less frequent disability reviews. The Trump administration's proposed rule would add another category called medical improvement likely, which would subject beneficiaries to disability reviews every two years. According to the Inquirer, an estimated 4.4 million beneficiaries would be included in that designation, many of them children and so-called step five recipients, an internal Social Security classification. Step five recipients, the Inquirer noted, are typically 50 to 65 years of age in poor health without much education or many job skills and often suffer from maladies such as debilitating back pain, depression, a herniated disc, or schizophrenia. Jennifer Burdick, supervising attorney with Community Legal Services in Philadelphia, told the Inquirer that placing step five recipients in the new medical improvement likely category and subjecting them to reviews every two years would represent a radical departure from past practice. Lawson of Social Security Works said Donald Trump and his advisors know that this will kill people and they do not care. So I want you to really understand that. This is what's at stake. This is going to kill people. Donald Trump's advisors, they know this, they are fully cognizant of the ramifications of this policy change. But yet they're still going to do it anyway. Why? Part of it is I think he just likes being cruel. Another part is maybe he thinks that by kicking more people off of this program or making eligibility more stringent, thus leading to them not qualifying again if they are uneducated and uninformed about this change and won't reapply appropriately, whatever the case may be. Maybe they think that this will save them money. But I mean, it's not like there's a shortage of money. We just increased the military budget again. So this is absolutely morally reprehensible, but the good news is that we still have a limited amount of time. We have until January 31st to take action. So call your representative, call your senator, raise hell because this is unacceptable. People who are on Social Security Disability Insurance are on that because they have no choice. They're disabled and they can't work. Some of them will not be on this program forever, but many of them rely on that for a living. And if they lose that, they lose their livelihoods. They may fall victim to homelessness. This is going to kill people. It's going to kill people. And the fact that there's been almost no talk about this by not just the mainstream media, but members of Congress, only I think two people have spoken out thus far. It really goes to show you that Donald Trump is undermining a lot of our social safety net programs. And he's doing things that will lead to people starving and ultimately dying and losing their livelihoods. And nobody's really paying attention to it. It's just, it's really, it's gut wrenching. It's sickening. And I can't help but feel really devastated for all of the people who are watching this and reading about this, who are on social security disability and fear for their lives. I mean, could you imagine hearing news that your livelihood might get taken away possibly if you don't jump through even more hoops? There's really nothing left to say. All that I can tell you is take action. Even if you're not on social security disability, you may one day need social security disability. And this is a benefit that is absolutely crucial if you want to have a functioning, compassionate society. Because we can't determine if we're going to one day be disabled and can't work. Like my father had a business and he lost it all when he became disabled randomly. He hurt his back out of his control, lost everything. You know, we need to make sure that we have some type of safety net that people can't fall under. There's some bare minimum protections for our citizens. But Trump is trying to take away everything. And I don't know what to say. It's just, it's just grotesque. What else do you say about this? There's nothing left to say. It's not surprising cruelty is the purpose. You know, he just wants everyone to fend for themselves and that or be born into wealth. I don't know. It's just, it's gross. But trust me, I'd have way more supporters at Patreon if that was my podcast. Sad.