President Biden delivers the keynote address at the 2025 Conference of Advocates, Counselors, and Representatives for the Disabled in Chicago, Illinois.
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00:00Thank you, thank you, thank you.
00:30Thank you, thank you, thank you.
01:00If you ever want anybody on your team, whether it's an athletic team, whether you're in a
01:04battle, whether it's a political team, whether it's a team just trying to help, you want
01:09O'Malley.
01:10If the guy has guts, no, no, I mean it sincerely, he not only has political courage, he has physical
01:18courage.
01:19He's across the board.
01:20If you ever want anybody standing next to me, I want O'Malley there with me, and I mean
01:25that sincerely.
01:26That really matters.
01:28You know, I always kid Maryland because Delaware, the second smallest state, we share the eastern
01:42shore of Maryland with Maryland.
01:44But we're close friends.
01:46And folks, you know, it's no surprise that he did a hell of a job when I asked him to
01:53be commissioner of the Social Security.
01:55And the reason I did that is not an ordinary transition for governor.
01:59But I knew, and I mean this from the bottom of my heart, I knew we needed someone with some
02:04guts and toughness who would fight for every single penny that was needed, that would try
02:11to restore the integrity of the system.
02:13And to everyone here today, I want to thank you, all of you, very much for this award.
02:18It means a great deal to me coming from you.
02:21And I mean that sincerely.
02:22It means a great deal.
02:23You're on the front lines every single day.
02:26You're helping.
02:27You're advocating for your fellow Americans, Americans with disabilities.
02:32It's a big deal.
02:33We talk about what happened in the physical side of it if we didn't have Social Security.
02:37Think of what the psychic calm gives so many people who just don't know where to go, don't
02:46know how to traverse what needs to be done, or alone.
02:52Last fall, on the White House lawn, we celebrated the anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities
02:56Act.
02:58As a United States senator 400 years ago, I was looking back on it, God Almighty, I've been
03:04doing this 50 years until he'll turn four years old, anyway.
03:08But back in the year 1990, I was a co-sponsor of the Americans with Disabilities Act as a
03:15United States senator.
03:17In my view, and I suspect many of you, it was the most — it was one of the most consequential
03:26civil rights laws in American history.
03:29That's what got me involved in politics in the first place.
03:33Delaware, like Maryland, was one of those states — it was a slave state.
03:36We had all the vestiges of what was going on back in the day.
03:40We were one of those states that still — I remember moving from Scranton, Pennsylvania,
03:45down to Wilmington, Delaware, and cold died.
03:47My dad moved back to where he had — we could get a job.
03:51I remember I pulled into — my mom would drive us on a Philadelphia Pike connecting Wilmington
03:56in Philadelphia.
03:57And she — we lived in an apartment complex.
04:00And she'd drive us only about — it was only about half a mile to Holy Rosary School in
04:06Claymont.
04:07But it was so dangerous, she wouldn't let us walk up because of the access road.
04:11I remember pulling in — pulling into the parking lot.
04:17And I had never seen — I had never seen hardly any black people in Scranton at the time when
04:22I was — and I was only going in fourth grade.
04:25And I remember seeing the kids going by at the time called — colored kids on a bus going
04:30by.
04:31They never turned right to go to Claymont High School.
04:33I wondered why.
04:34I asked my mom, why — why?
04:37So in Delaware, they're not allowed to go to school, in public school, with white kids
04:41hunting.
04:42That sparked my sense of outrage as a kid, just like it does — I mean — and these
04:48young kids right here can tell you things affect them when they learn about something
04:52that's really just unfair and unjust.
04:55You know, my dad — my dad was an honorable man.
04:59And my dad used to have an expression.
05:01He said, Joey, your job's about a lot more than a paycheck.
05:05It's about your dignity.
05:07It's about respect.
05:09It's about being able to look your kid in the eye and say, honey, it's going to be okay
05:13and mean it.
05:14Well, that's what you're all about.
05:17That's what the — that's what the legislation's about.
05:20It's about dignity.
05:22Simple dignity.
05:24Everyone, everyone deserves to be treated with dignity.
05:30Regardless of their standards, regardless of their economic system, regardless of who
05:34they are, making sure that more than 60 million Americans who are living with disabilities
05:41are treated with dignity.
05:43It's who we are as Americans.
05:45That's what it's about.
05:47I mean it.
05:49Dignity at work, at school, in their communities, in every corner of American life.
05:59Laws like the ADA need advocates like you.
06:03You're the ones that keep it going.
06:05God love you.
06:06You fight like hell every single day to make sure the law is respected and your clients'
06:13rights are protected.
06:14So, from the bottom of my heart, I mean this.
06:16I give you my word as a Biden.
06:18From the bottom of my heart, I say thank you.
06:21Thank you for what you're doing.
06:23Thank you for your commitment to the dignity of all Americans.
06:26Because that's what all of this is about.
06:29Folks, today I want to talk to you about an issue that's front and center right now for
06:37millions of Americans.
06:39Social Security.
06:40You know, some of you may know the Democrats have declared today the Save Social Security
06:46National Action Day.
06:47National Day of Action, I should say.
06:50We know just how much Social Security matters to people's lives.
06:54Everyone in this room fights for people with disabilities who rely on Social Security to
06:58survive.
06:59To survive.
07:00Not just the physical side.
07:03It's the mental side.
07:04It's the mental side.
07:06You make sure folks get the benefits they earn after a lifetime of hard work.
07:11The work they do is more than just a profession, what you do.
07:16It's a calling.
07:17It's not just a profession.
07:19And Social Security is more than a government program.
07:22It's a sacred promise.
07:25We made it a sacred promise.
07:29Seventy-three million Americans receive Social Security.
07:33From their first paycheck for their entire life, they pay into Social Security.
07:38And in return, they count on Social Security to be for them when they're going to need it.
07:45We must never, ever betray that trust or turn our backs on an obligation.
07:52That's why, during my presidency, we protected Social Security and made it stronger.
07:58Martin, the governor can tell you.
08:00We came into office, Social Security Administration had its lowest staffing, she referenced it.
08:04Lowest staffing levels in 50 years.
08:06And demand is going through the roof because of my generation and the baby boom generation
08:14reaching the retirement age.
08:16So, the demands on Social Security increased significantly.
08:20Our administration secured nearly $2 billion to reduce the black backlogs and improve customer
08:28service.
08:29We slashed wait times for folks in need who are calling the 1-800 number.
08:35We got it down to under 13 minutes.
08:37It used to be three times that long we took office.
08:40We made it easier for people to get help with their claims online.
08:45We reduced how long it takes to review a case.
08:49We fixed the appeal system to make it uniform in all 50 states, which made a difference.
08:56We strengthened the anti-fraud measures to protect people's identities and to make sure
09:03benefits are going to people who actually they belong to.
09:07By the way, those 300-year-old folks getting that Social Security, I want to meet them because
09:11I like to figure out how they live out.
09:14Hell of a thing, man.
09:16I'm looking for longevity because it's hell when you turn 40 years old.
09:21But as a result, by the time we left office, we had improved every single line of customer
09:28service, from applying for disability to filing an appeal to reporting fraud.
09:33But it all became more efficient and more effective.
09:37And I'll bet it made your jobs easier, too, in the process.
09:42Now, these achievements may not sound so glamorous to most people, but, you know, they're absolutely
09:53essential.
09:54In my view, one of the most important jobs of any elected official is to make sure the
10:00government works for the people, works for all people.
10:03It's understandable.
10:04They can understand what it is.
10:07And we keep our promises to the people, to all the people.
10:13And that's exactly what we did, thanks to all of you.
10:16I also signed in law the Social Security Fairness Act.
10:19That act eliminated two unfair rules so public employees wouldn't get shortchanged if the
10:26government pension offset and the windfall elimination provision can never come in ever
10:31again.
10:32But as a result, more than two million people are now finally receiving the full benefits
10:41they earned.
10:42And remember, we also faced a constant threat by some members, Republican members of the
10:50Congress, to cut and gut Social Security, period.
10:54Cut and gut it, period.
10:56They wanted to let Social Security expire every five years.
11:00Unless reauthorized by the Congress, who in the hell do they think they are?
11:13Every five years and then wait around and be – no.
11:17I will not go further or get in trouble, but look, folks, you can imagine the chaos it would
11:27be.
11:28Every five years, Congress is going to step up.
11:30Can you imagine this Congress stepping up?
11:35They threatened to raise the retirement age as well.
11:38Now, that might not be a hardship for someone working in a comfortable job.
11:43But if you're on your feet all day, you're doing manual labor all day, you're working with
11:50a disability, it's a very different matter.
11:55And then they even tried to face cuts – forced cuts on Social Security during the negotiation
12:00of the debt ceiling.
12:01These are wonderful guys.
12:06Last time this guy had the job, he raised the debt ceiling because of an enormous and
12:12profligate tax cut to the super wealthy.
12:15And then he said – look, then they started talking to his colleagues.
12:20Well, maybe we can do something about Social Security, but we got to do something about
12:25the debt ceiling.
12:26How are we going to – we can find the money in Social Security.
12:29Unless we do what they wanted.
12:30They wanted to cut Social Security.
12:33Not on my watch.
12:35We refuse to go along with any of that.
12:39Look, Americans can – I've always been able to count on these benefits.
12:46And let me pause a second here and say this.
12:50We talk about the physical needs that Social Security provides for people, particularly hard-working
12:57people, people retired, people on the edge.
13:02But the psychological impact is profound.
13:09Profound.
13:10You're a man or a woman.
13:12You're 70, 80 years old.
13:14You're not in good shape.
13:16You have a disability.
13:18And you hear the check may not come.
13:23How do you sleep at night?
13:26How do you sleep at night?
13:29We lived up in Wilmington, a three-bedroom split-level home in development, 40 homes,
13:36with four kids and a grandpop living with us.
13:40And I remember my bed – our bedroom headboard was near my dad's and mom's room.
13:48And you could tell when dad was restless.
13:50I remember asking one night my mom, what's the matter with dad, the next morning.
13:56See, it's found out that they're not going to provide insurance anymore where he works.
14:06Well, imagine if you're somebody who's been struggling your whole life.
14:11You literally count on Social Security to buy your food just to get by.
14:21And you hear the threats, but what might happen?
14:26Many of these beneficiaries, it's their only income.
14:29If they were cut or taken away, it would be devastating, devastating for millions of people.
14:36And the psychological pressure we put people under by having this debate is absolutely devastating.
14:44That's why we worked so damn hard to make Social Security Administration stronger than they've been in years.
14:49And that's why I asked the governor to take over, by the way.
14:52But look what's happened now.
14:54Fewer than 100 days, this new administration has made so much – done so much damage and so much destruction.
15:09It's kind of breathtaking if it could happen that soon.
15:14They've taken a hatchet to the Social Security Administration, pushing an additional 7,000 employees, 7,000 out the door in that time,
15:24including the most seasoned career officials.
15:28Now they're getting ready to push thousands more out the door.
15:33Already we can see the effects.
15:35For example, thousands of people use the Social Security website every single day to check on their benefits and submit their claims.
15:43But now, the Technology Division of the Social Security Administration has been cut in half.
15:49And so the website's crashing.
15:54People can't sign on to their accounts.
15:57What do you think it does to that woman living alone, a 74-year check-in,
16:04just not able to even find out whether – she can't even find out what that disability claim is she had?
16:11She can't file a new disability claim.
16:14And it's not these people being told incorrectly that their benefits have ended.
16:22Folks, imagine the panic that causes if you're a retiree living alone and only Social Security to depend upon.
16:33So now people are overwhelming the phone lines or showing up at the local Social Security office, tearful and frantic,
16:42and told, do you have an appointment?
16:44In that tone, by the way.
16:46I can give you a personal example if I'm not going to, though.
16:50To cap it all off, serious people are now generally concerned for the first time in history,
16:56for the first and only time in history that Social Security benefits may be delayed or interrupted.
17:05Folks, let's put this in perspective.
17:08In the 90 years since Franklin Roosevelt created the Social Security system,
17:13people have always gotten their Social Security checks.
17:17They've gotten them during wartime, during recessions, during a pandemic.
17:24No matter what, they got them.
17:26But now, for the first time ever, that might change.
17:32It would be calamity for millions of families, millions of people.
17:38But the current Secretary of Commerce doesn't seem to get it.
17:44Or based on his comments, he doesn't seem to even care.
17:47Many of you saw what he said the other day.
17:50By the way, he's a billionaire. God love him, as my mother would say.
17:55Paying 8.5% in taxes. Anyway.
17:59Billionaires, no, he's paying.
18:02But when he talked about the possibility that Social Security checks
18:06not going out this month, he shrugged it off.
18:11Here's what he said.
18:13He said his 94-year-old mother-in-law wouldn't complain.
18:19Wouldn't bother her. She's probably a lovely woman.
18:22No kidding. Her son-in-law is a billionaire.
18:27What about that 94-year-old mother living all by herself?
18:33He doesn't have a billionaire in the family.
18:36All the retirees who depend on that monthly check to feed themselves.
18:41All those people with disabilities have no other source.
18:46What about all those people?
18:49That's who you fight for.
18:53So they should desperately need you.
18:56Folks, it's not just the Secretary of Commerce.
19:01We heard how others, empowered and emboldened by this administration,
19:06talk about Social Security.
19:09One of them called it a Ponzi scheme.
19:12A Ponzi scheme?
19:15What the hell are they talking about?
19:17People earn these benefits.
19:19They paid into that benefit.
19:21They rely on that benefit.
19:24And no one, no one, no one should take it away.
19:30You know, Franklin Roosevelt had a different view.
19:35He was President coming out of the Great Depression.
19:38He and all his colleagues saw great suffering.
19:41So much poverty.
19:43He also took steps to raise standard of living for ordinary Americans,
19:47including creating Social Security.
19:51He himself was from a very wealthy family.
19:54He needed Social Security,
19:57but understood how much it would mean to millions of Americans.
20:01He knew it would make America stronger in the process.
20:06And it has.
20:09It makes our economy stronger.
20:11It makes the community stronger.
20:14It makes families stronger.
20:16It gives peace of mind.
20:18And so the vast majority of Americans,
20:22including many wealthy Americans,
20:24still support, thank God, Social Security.
20:27And very wealthy billionaires still support Social Security.
20:30They may not rely on themselves, but they know.
20:35They know.
20:36Social Security deserves to be protected
20:40for the good of the nation as a whole.
20:42You've got to ask yourself.
20:47You've got to ask yourself, why is this happening?
20:53Why are these guys taking aim in Social Security now?
20:58Well, they're following that old line from tech startups.
21:04The quote is, move fast, break things.
21:08Well, they're certainly breaking things.
21:11They're shooting first and aiming later.
21:14And as a result, the result is a lot of needless pain and sleepless nights.
21:21My friend Governor O'Malley knows what they're really up to.
21:25He says, and I love his quote,
21:27they want to wreck it so they can rob it.
21:31They want to wreck it so they can rob it.
21:34And why do they want to rob it?
21:37In order to deliver huge tax cuts to billionaires and big corporations and keep it going.
21:43They want to make permanent 2017 tax cuts, which overwhelmingly benefit the wealthiest Americans and the biggest corporations.
21:53That's going to cost $5 trillion.
21:57Where are they going to get $5 trillion to pay for it other than continue to run the deficit up?
22:04What will they always do?
22:06By winning, by running up the national debt, number one, and then by taking the money from someplace else.
22:13What are the two big pots of money out there in raw numbers?
22:18Social Security and Medicaid.
22:20Well, from other programs, people rely on and have paid into.
22:28Republicans, these guys are willing to hurt the middle class and the working class
22:32in order to deliver significant greater wealth to their already very wealthy.
22:36Who in the hell do they think they are?
22:39I really think they, I mean just basic, this basic decency.
22:45Who do they think they are?
22:47I think anybody should go up, they can make a billion dollars a year, they can.
22:54Fine.
22:55Pay your fair share.
22:57You know what the average, we have a thousand billionaires in America.
23:02You know the average federal tax they pay?
23:058.2%.
23:08Anybody want to trade that number?
23:10That's your pay?
23:12Folks, look.
23:14Let me close, I'm sorry to go on so long, but it's just, anyway.
23:22I grew up in Scrant, Pennsylvania as a kid, and then Claymont, Delaware.
23:27Middle class towns, working class towns.
23:30Places where people worked hard all their lives with the promise that they'd be able to retire someday,
23:36with a little bit of dignity.
23:39Because they've been paying in a thing called Social Security since the very paycheck they've earned.
23:46These people get knocked down every day, learn to get up.
23:51My dad's one experience when you get knocked down, just get up.
23:54Get up.
23:55Get up.
23:56They get up every day.
23:58The last thing they need from their government is deliberate cruelty.
24:08It's about people in neighborhoods across the country who look out for each other.
24:14They don't see empathy, they don't see it as a sign of weakness.
24:18They see empathy as a decent instinct.
24:23They don't see cruelty as a sign of strength.
24:29Social Security is about more than retirement accounts.
24:33It's about honoring a fundamental trust between government and people.
24:38It's about peace of mind for those who work their whole lives so they can rest assured they'll have a chance.
24:51They'll get back some of what they earned and what they deserve.
24:54But more than anything else, I mean this sincerely.
25:01And as my friend says, maybe it's the Irish of it in me, but it's about who we are as Americans.
25:08Who are we?
25:09What makes us distinct from the rest of the world?
25:13It comes down to basic, in my view, fundamental American values.
25:20Nobody's king.
25:23Nobody's the boss.
25:25Everybody has a shot.
25:28All people asking for is a shot.
25:32Honesty.
25:34Decency.
25:36We're hard workers rewarded.
25:38Have some faith in each other.
25:41Fairness.
25:43Simple fairness.
25:45We can't go on like this as a divided nation, as divided as we are.
25:51Like I said, I've been doing this a long time.
25:55It's never been this divided.
26:00Granted, it's roughly 30%, but it's a 30% that has no heart.
26:06What we see in America.
26:09So we believe in fairness.
26:13And that's the America we can never forget or walk away from.
26:18Folks, I mean this.
26:20I know it sounds trite, but I have to remember who we are.
26:24We're the United States of America.
26:27The United States of America.
26:30The most unique country in the history of the world.
26:35And that's not hyperbole.
26:37Everywhere in the nation was founded because of religion, geography, ethnicity.
26:43We're the only nation in the world.
26:47Found on a notion.
26:50We hold these truths to be self-evident.
26:54That all men and women are created equal and endowed by their creator.
26:59That's the one thing to unite us.
27:01It's an idea.
27:02Every other nation was because of a purpose.
27:05It's an idea.
27:07And how can we fulfill the outcome, the meaning of that idea?
27:14We walk away from just basic fundamental decency.
27:20Folks, sorry to go on so long, but I feel deeply about this.
27:26You know, I've heard me say it before and I'll say it again.
27:33There's nothing, nothing beyond the capacity of America to do when we do it together.
27:42Let's do it together.
27:44God bless you all.
27:45May God protect our troops.
27:48I mean, thank you for what you do.
27:50Thank you for this wonderful award.