White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt addressed concerns Monday evening on Fox News, stating that President Donald Trump has instructed the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and Elon Musk to “identify fraud” within the Social Security Administration.
Democrats have opposed Musk and DOGE’s involvement with the Trump administration, particularly following efforts to overhaul the U.S. Agency for International Development. Criticism escalated after Musk shared a chart on X showing Social Security records listing ages from zero to 369 years old.
“I’ve been fighting fake news reporters all day long here in the Washington, D.C., swamp who are trying to fearmonger the American people into believing that this administration is going after their hard-earned tax dollars and Social Security checks,” Leavitt told host Sean Hannity. “So I want to set the record straight on your show tonight, Sean, and I’m very grateful for the opportunity to do so. President Trump has directed Elon Musk and the DOGE team to identify fraud at the Social Security Administration.”
“They haven’t dug into the books yet, but they suspect that there are tens of millions of deceased people who are receiving fraudulent Social Security payments. So their goal in going into the Social Security Administration is to identify three things,” she added.
A July 2023 audit from the Social Security Administration’s Office of the Inspector General reported that “approximately 18.9 million numberholders” born in 1920 or earlier lacked death information on their records.
Leavitt outlined DOGE’s objectives in addressing potential waste within the SSA and dismissed claims that the Trump administration had ulterior motives.
“Number one, to identify duplicate payments and to end them. Number two, to identify payments that are going to deceased people who are no longer living and should no longer be receiving that money,” Leavitt explained. “Number three, to protect the integrity of this system for hardworking Americans who have been paying into it their entire lives. So, rest assured to all of the people watching your show tonight, if you paid into the system honestly, you will continue to receive your Social Security tax checks.”
“Do not buy into the lies from the legacy fake news media who are trying to fear you and scare you into believing otherwise,” she continued. “This is what we’ve seen them do about President Trump for years with every promise that he has made. He’s going in there to protect your hard-earned money. That is the ultimate goal.”
The SSA’s 2023 audit followed a 2015 report that urged the agency to resolve database discrepancies. That earlier audit found 6.5 million Social Security numbers without corresponding death records. The 2023 report suggested that many of the 18.9 million unrecorded deaths likely occurred decades ago, before electronic death reporting was common. Resolving these discrepancies, the audit noted, would enhance the accuracy of the Social Security Death Master File, which tracks deceased individuals with Social Security numbers.
