DOGE's Potential Impact On Social Security & The VA

The NPR Politics Podcast

NPR

Politics, Daily News, News

4.5 • 24.9K Ratings

🗓️ 26 March 2025

⏱️ 15 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

The Trump administration's efforts to reshape the federal government have now set their sights on how the Social Security Administration and the Department of Veterans Affairs could be reformed. But their proposed changes could leave millions of Americans who rely on services from those agencies vulnerable.

This episode: political correspondents Susan Davis & Ashley Lopez, and veterans correspondent Quil Lawrence.

The podcast is produced by Bria Suggs & Kelli Wessinger and edited by Casey Morell. Our executive producer is Muthoni Muturi.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Hey, I'm Scott Schaefer.
0:02.0	And I'm Marisa Lagos.
0:03.0	We host Political Breakdown.
0:04.5	With the 2024 election over and President Trump in the White House, there's going to be a lot to keep up with this year.
0:10.3	Political Breakdown has got you covered.
0:12.2	We'll bring smart analysis, a wide range of voices, and even some laughs.
0:16.0	Join us for Political Breakdown every Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday from KQED, part of the NPR Network.
0:22.2	Hi, I'm Claudia.
0:23.6	And I'm Wyatt.
0:24.5	And we're on our way to the In A Pickle Festival in New Bronfels, Texas.
0:28.5	This podcast was recorded at 105 p.m. on Wednesday, March 26th.
0:32.9	Things may have changed by the time you hear this, but soon we'll find out why this festival is such a big dill.
0:38.7	Okay, here's the show.
0:44.5	I think I would enjoy a pickle festival, assuming it's not a euphemism for anything.
0:50.4	Yeah, and New Bruffles is a cool town. It's really close to me here in Austin. It's like a German town in the middle of central Texas.
0:56.6	All right. Hey there. It's the NPR Politics podcast. I'm Susan Davis. I cover politics. I'm Ashley Lopez. I cover politics.
1:03.6	I'm Quill Lawrence. I cover veterans and the VA.
1:06.1	And today on the show, more on the Trump administration's continuing efforts to reshape the federal government.
1:12.0	We're going to focus today on two agencies in particular, the Social Security Administration and the Department of Veterans Affairs.
1:19.5	Ashley, I want to start with you because you've been reporting on some of the proposed changes to the Social Security Administration.
1:25.0	What are they?
1:25.7	Yeah. So, I mean, it's been a slew of things that have
	...

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