Lawmakers Sent Bisignano 17 Letters Previously Sent To Acting Commissioner Dudek
Bisignano And The Trump Administration Could Cut Benefits For 3.8 Million New Yorkers Who Rely On Social Security
U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Ranking Member of the Senate Aging Committee, joined Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), and U.S. Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) to welcome newly-confirmed Commissioner of the Social Security Administration (SSA) Frank Bisignano to the agency with copies of 17 letters — containing nearly 200 unanswered questions — that the lawmakers had previously sent to the SSA under Acting Commissioner Leland Dudek. The push is the latest in the Senate Democrats’ Social Security War Room efforts to fight back against President Trump and Elon Musk’s attacks on Social Security.
“As ranking member of the Senate Special Committee on Aging, I am committed to protecting benefits for the 3.8 million New Yorkers and 69 million Americans who rely on Social Security to pay their bills, afford medical care, and put food on the table,” said Senator Gillibrand. “Recipients have been paying into the system their entire lives with the understanding that they will receive a return on their investment. The US government made a promise to our seniors to take care of them, and it’s our responsibility to make sure Commissioner Bisignano and the Trump administration keep that promise.”
Since President Trump took office, Elon Musk and his team at the so-called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) have worked to dismantle the Social Security Administration. Senate Democrats sent 17 letters to the SSA — helmed by then-Acting Commissioner Leland Dudek — pressing for answers and fighting back against the attack on Americans’ services and benefits.
Following Senate Republicans’ vote to confirm Frank Bisignano last week, the lawmakers redelivered all 17 of these letters, along with a note pressing Bisignano to respond and answer for DOGE’s attacks on the SSA.
“We have not received responses to the vast majority of our questions. In fact, Acting Commissioner Leland Dudek has reportedly instructed staff to not respond to public or congressional inquiries. The limited answers we have received have been unsatisfactory,” wrote the lawmakers in their note to Bisignano.
The lawmakers also highlighted their past requests for information from Bisignano — most of which went unanswered.
“You repeatedly claimed that, because you were not yet working at SSA, you did not have sufficient information to answer. You made these claims despite the fact that a former SSA employee whistleblower has reported that you have been participating extensively in high-level operational, management, and personnel decisions at SSA. Regardless of your previous claims, though, you have now been sworn in and have access to the information you claimed you need to provide us answers,” the lawmakers continued.
Senate Democrats’ Social Security War Room is a coordinated effort to fight back against the Trump administration’s attack on Americans’ Social Security. The War Room coordinates messaging across the Senate Democratic Caucus and external stakeholders; encourages grassroots engagement by providing opportunities for Americans to share what Social Security means to them; and educates Senate staff, the American public, and stakeholders about Republicans’ agenda and their continued cuts to Americans’ Social Security services and benefits.
The full text of the Senators’ letters can be found here.
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