Last week, U.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville, R-Alabama, took to the Senate floor to deliver a speech in which he derided Social Security as a “scam,” “highway robbery,” and a “big, gigantic, blown-up Ponzi scheme,” arguing that the Social Security Trust Fund will become insolvent in the next five years.
Tuberville also inaccurately claimed that while many Americans “will never see Social Security benefits that they worked hard to pay into throughout their careers,” undocumented immigrants are “getting rich” off Social Security. While certain noncitizens can request a Social Security number, they must provide specific documents to verify their identity, legal status and/or ability to work. In fact, undocumented immigrants often pay into Social Security without ever receiving benefits, which works to offset the demographic strains that threaten the program’s solvency.
In response to Tuberville’s speech, former U.S. Senator Doug Jones posted a video on social media slamming his gubernatorial opponent for attacking a program that supports millions of Americans.
“Millions of people depend on Social Security,” Jones said. “Hundreds of thousands of people in Alabama depend on Social Security. They’ve never missed a paycheck, and this guy calls it a ‘scam.’”
In the video, Jones also states that “Tuberville would know all about scams. He was involved in one”–referencing the criminal investigation into a hedge fund cofounded by Tuberville which resulted in his business partner pleading guilty to fraud. Tuberville, who denied any wrongdoing at the time, went on to settle a lawsuit filed by investors who lost millions of dollars through the fund.
The senator has also faced past criticism over his management of the Tommy Tuberville Foundation, a charitable organization which has only given a small portion of the money it raises to charity while spending tens of thousands of dollars on annual golf tournaments and other expenses.
Jones also noted that despite his criticisms of the program, Tuberville himself has received $93,000 in Social Security benefits over the past three years.
“What is it? Does he think that he deserves more than the $93,000 that he got out of [Social Security]?” Jones asked. “Maybe so, maybe that’s why he is trying to take so much money from the data center companies, why he is talking to the power companies and other people who are giving all of this money to his campaign.”
“All of you state employees. All of you retired teachers. If [Tuberville] says that Social Security is a scam, just think about what he will want to do to your state retirement,” he added. “Think about it folks. Alabama deserves better.”
When APR reached out to Tuberville’s office for comment on Jones’ criticisms, a spokesperson for the senator simply reiterated his critiques of Social Security.
“If you actually listen to Sen. Tuberville’s speech, he argued that Social Security will be insolvent in 5 years because Congress keeps kicking the can down the road,” the spokesperson wrote in an emailed response. “He also thinks Americans would be seeing 10x the returns if they were allowed to invest the money themselves instead of having it managed by the federal government.”
The spokesperson did not elaborate on why Tuberville continues to personally participate in a program he has publicly denounced as a “scam,” nor did they share any reactions to the content of Jones’ video.
Jones and Tuberville are currently set to face off in the November general election to decide who will be Alabama’s next governor.
