The White House was forced into an embarrassing Twitter climbdown on Wednesday, deleting a tweet that claimed President Joe Biden was responsible for seniors getting the biggest increase in Social Security checks in a decade.
As fact checkers were quick to point out, the increase is based on the rate of inflation and required by law.
At first, Twitter added a note to the original Monday afternoon tweet.
By Tuesday lunchtime the message had been deleted.
The trouble began with a tweet from the official White House account.
‘Seniors are getting the biggest increase in their Social Security checks in 10 years through President Biden’s leadership,’ it said.
Part of that is true. Next year Social Security benefits will rise by 8.7 percent next year, which is the largest cost-of-living adjustment since 1981.
Policy experts on Twitter were quick to suggest the Biden administration was claiming credit for something that happened automatically – and which reflected historic levels of inflation.
Twitter then added its fact check note.
‘Seniors will receive a large Social Security benefit increase due to the annual cost of living adjustment, which is based on the inflation rate,’ it said.
‘President Nixon in 1972 signed into law automatic benefit adjustment tied to the Consumer Price Index.’
It included a link to the relevant legislation.
Biden’s opponents delighted in the confusion.
‘Next year’s Social Security increase will be one of the largest in decades b/c of Biden’s disastrous policies, which have caused prices to rise, fueled record inflation, & cut it into critical retirement savings,’ posted Republican Rep. Claudia Tenney of New York.
A White House official said the tweet was deleted because, ‘The point was incomplete.’
The official said a fuller picture was outlined by White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre when she previewed the forthcoming rise, suggesting it would be about $140 a month on average.
‘For the first time in over a decade, seniors’ Medicare premiums will decrease even as their Social Security checks increase,’ she said.
‘This means that seniors will have a chance to get ahead of inflation, due to the rare combination of rising benefits and falling premiums.
