Anytime someone wants to minimize the importance of Social Security they call it an entitlement program. One party in particular, always calls it an entitlement program. When they call it an entitlement program they are falsely spreading the idea that Americans are entitled to benefits just because they were born in the country. No one is just given Social Security benefits, the benefits are earned through work.
The definitions of entitlement focus on “having a right to something.” Someone who has not worked and paid into Social Security has no right to benefits so how can it be considered an entitlement program? From The Motley Fool, “In order to receive Social Security benefits, your kids and grandkids will need 40 lifetime work credits, of which a maximum of four can be earned each year. Though they’ll have to work at least 10 years to reach the amount needed to receive a retired worker benefit, the Social Security Administration has set the bar pretty low for reaching these work credits. For example, in 2019, $1,360 in earned income will earn one work credit. Thus, it only takes $5,440 in earned income to max out next year’s work credits. If they do this for a decade, your kids and grandkids will be on track to receive a Social Security retirement benefit decades down the road.”
Minimizing the work Americans have put in over decades to be eligible for Social Security benefits is just plain wrong. The words used to describe and analyze political hot topics also matter. Social Security is no more an entitlement than vacation time form an employer or funds in a 401K, you have to work to be “entitled” to these benefits. People who work and pay taxes into Social Security to be eligible for these benefits.
