Ex-Social Security Chief Warns System Collapse Within 90 Days

Former Social Security Administration (SSA) Commissioner Martin O'Malley has warned that the agency is on the verge of collapse, predicting that disruptions in benefit payments could occur within the next 30 to 90 days due to severe budget and staffing cuts under Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). Approximately 73 million Americans rely on Social Security checks, and O'Malley emphasized that current recipients may experience more stability than new claimants, who are likely to face significant delays. He attributed the impending crisis to IT outages and office closures exacerbated by the cuts, urging people to start saving money as a precaution. Critics argue that these drastic measures not only threaten the financial security of retirees and disabled individuals but could also have political repercussions for those enabling this dismantling. O'Malley stated that public outrage may be necessary to halt the erosion of this essential safety net, which many citizens see as earned benefits. The potential failure to distribute checks would mark a historic failure for the SSA, raising fears across a broad spectrum of the American populace, including many Trump supporters who disproportionately depend on Social Security.