Social Security

Under 50? The Trump-Musk-DOGE Attack on Social Security Is Coming for You Too.

Even if retirement feels out of reach, younger Americans can’t afford to ignore the GOP’s coordinated effort to sabotage Social Security from the inside out.

The playbook seems clear: Take one of the most popular and successful government programs we hav, and break it. Claim it’s so dysfunctional that it has to be dismantled, perhaps even privatized as Republicans have tried to do before. And use a flood of lies and misinformation to convince younger Americans to go along with their scheme. In essence, they’ll set our house on fire, and then stand there with fistfuls of spent matches telling us that it was doomed anyway and “would you like to invest in a nice condo near Mar-a-Lago instead?”

Trump’s War on Older Women

By now we all know that President Trump’s various policies and announcements have targeted immigrants, institutions with DEI programs and several federal agencies, including ones that focus on media, libraries, museums and ending homelessness.

But one of the biggest groups caught in his crosshairs is older women.

Here’s the truth: Social Security is the foundation of retirement security for most American seniors, and the damage, especially to women, is likely to be severe. Women account for more than half (56 percent) of the total beneficiary population aged 65 or older; they are the vast majority (78 percent) of widowed retirees.

Keeping Score: Trump Threatens Students and Universities; Texas Midwife Arrested for Abortion Care; Americans Criticize Federal Worker Firings, ‘It’s Time to Fire Elon Musk’

In every issue of Ms., we track research on our progress in the fight for equality, catalogue can’t-miss quotes from feminist voices and keep tabs on the feminist movement’s many milestones. We’re Keeping Score online, too—in this biweekly roundup.

This week: Trump pulled university funding and arrested student leaders over pro-Palestine protests; a Texas midwife faces felony charges for providing abortion care; Congress members avoid town halls after Department of Education and other federal agencies were decimated; abortion bans threaten the lives of Black mothers; and more.

Trump’s Speech Was Full of Broken Promises, Lies, and Warnings of More Damage for Women and Families

As President Donald Trump took the stage on Tuesday night for his joint address to Congress, the stock market is down, inflation is up, consumer confidence levels are at their lowest levels since August 2021, and a large majority of Americans believe the economy and their personal cost of living are on the wrong track.

Trump’s address to Congress was filled with falsehoods, broken promises and attacks on women and families, signaling more harmful policies ahead. He pushed tax cuts for the wealthy at the expense of essential programs like Medicaid and Social Security, ramped up anti-immigration rhetoric, and prioritized culture war issues over real economic solutions.

Keeping Score: Executive Orders Attack Trans Community; Americans Need Paid Leave and Childcare Policies; Unvaccinated Measles Cases Soar

In every issue of Ms., we track research on our progress in the fight for equality, catalogue can’t-miss quotes from feminist voices and keep tabs on the feminist movement’s many milestones. We’re Keeping Score online, too—in this biweekly roundup.

This week: Trump’s executive orders continue to threaten trans people’s safety, jobs and rights; policies like paid family leave and universal preschool are incredibly popular; measles spreads among unvaccinated populations; Congress signals their plan to cut SNAP and Medicaid; women’s college basketball teams will be paid for March Madness games; almost a quarter of Gen Z adults are part of the LGBTQ community; and more.

Keeping Score: Court Blocks Student Loan Relief Plan; Former N.Y. Cop Sentenced 10 Weekends in Jail After Child Rape; Trump’s ‘Tampon Tim’ Jab Backfires

In every issue of Ms., we track research on our progress in the fight for equality, catalogue can’t-miss quotes from feminist voices and keep tabs on the feminist movement’s many milestones. We’re Keeping Score online, too—in this biweekly roundup.

This week: Kamala Harris reaffirmed her candidacy for president at the DNC; Republican-appointed judges strike down Biden’s student loan relief plan; a new law bans women from speaking in public in Afghanistan; working moms earn just 71 cents per dollar earned by dads; understanding the orgasm gap; gold-medalist boxer Imane Khelif fights back against racist and sexist abuse; new reproductive rights bills signed into law in Illinois; and more.

Anti-Abortion Extremists Are Diverting Tax Dollars to Crisis Pregnancy Centers

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Anti-abortion politicians are siphoning public dollars meant for low-income mothers and their children to fund anti-abortion crisis pregnancy centers (CPCs) that coerce poor women and teens seeking an abortion to give birth, further condemning them to long-term economic hardship. Being denied a wanted abortion is a proven predictor of maternal and child poverty.

As the Biden administration advances a proposal to prohibit CPCs from future access to these federal funds, the anti-abortion movement is pushing back in force, claiming CPCs save taxpayer dollars and provide vital healthcare and safety net services to poor families. A first-time analysis of the CPC industry’s own reporting wholly contradicts these claims.