Democratic Sens. Elizabeth Warren (Mass.) and Ron Wyden (Ore.) are urgent the Trump administration over the influence the president’s sweeping commerce insurance policies could have on the funds of retirees and other people near retirement.
“The economic chaos triggered by President Trump’s disastrous tariff policy has the potential to decimate retirees’ savings,” they wrote in a letter to the White Home on Friday that was obtained by The Hill. “Simultaneously, the Trump Administration has taken a wrecking ball to the Social Security Administration (SSA), limiting seniors’ access to their hard-earned benefits.”
“In doing this, the Trump Administration is making it harder for seniors across the country to make ends meet,” they added.
Warren, 75, is the rating member of the Senate Banking Committee, and Wyden, 76, is the highest Democrat on the Finance Committee.
The duo addressed the letter to Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, U.S. Commerce Consultant Jamieson Greer and Social Safety Commissioner Frank Bisignano.
The White Home did not instantly reply to The Hill’s request for remark.
Constancy Investments, the biggest supplier of 401(okay) plans within the U.S., reported this week that common 401(okay) balances fell 3 p.c to $127,100 in the course of the first three months of the yr. It stated common particular person retirement account (IRA) balances fell 4 p.c to $121,983.
The monetary companies large stated the slumps have been primarily “a result of market swings,” which have been extensively attributed to Trump’s unpredictable shifts on tariffs this yr.
“President Trump’s trade policy is creating economic chaos,” Warren and Wyden wrote of their letter to Cupboard officers, citing latest remarks from the Federal Reserve’s Federal Open Markets Committee and Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell concerning the nation’s financial outlook amid Trump’s tariff swings.
“Of the 57 million retirees in this country, 77 percent rely on a combination of their savings — often in the form of a 401(k) — and Social Security benefits,” they continued within the letter.
Their letter highlighted cuts to the SSA from the White Home’s Division of Authorities Effectivity (DOGE). Dozens of Social Safety workplaces throughout the nation are anticipated to shut this yr as a part of DOGE’s federal authorities makeover.
The senators have requested Trump officers to offer them with particulars by Monday on whether or not the administration has performed analyses of how the tariff insurance policies are impacting retirees and inflation, in addition to how DOGE cuts will influence the power to entry retirement advantages and whether or not the administration plans to supply extra help on seniors dwelling on mounted incomes.
The White Home stated earlier this week that the administration despatched letters to nations to remind them that the president desires to dealer extra favorable commerce offers whereas his tariffs are quickly paused.
