Social Security cuts are very credible using the following—
First, if a certain number of dollars need to cut, that reduction won’t be uniformly distributed. Lower end recipients will get their full check. Higher end, less so.
You can do this explicitly, or more likely by adjusting the annual COLA differently by check size. Not net worth means testing. Rather, bigger checks get less COLA.
But one figure that stands out on Joe and Jill Biden’s Form 1040 is line 5a, where Social Security benefits received is reported. In 2018 – the most recent tax filing that Biden made available as part of his presidential campaign – the couple received $49,545 from Social Security.