WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, Democratic Whip Katherine Clark (MA-5) joined the House Democratic Steering and Policy Committee for a hearing on the Republican assault on Social Security. The hearing featured witness testimonies underscoring the devastating impacts that the cuts would have on seniors and families nationwide. Below is a transcript of her closing remarks:

"I want to thank Governor O'Malley for your incredible testimony and the facts that you are bringing around the country. I believe we have another town hall tonight. But my real thanks are to the three of you. Thank you for your courage to come and tell these stories. If your stories don't make people outraged, we're not paying attention. We're not paying attention.

"This is the most successful government program we have ever had. And in the richest country on Earth, there is no public resource that has done so much for so many. If Elon has his wish and dismantled Social Security today, 22 million people fall into poverty. 22 million people — that's the scale of the threat that we are facing.

"Without Social Security — as you have brought to life for us, and we thank each and every one of you again — one in three Americans would end their lives in poverty. And, Ms. Brown, as you said, we don't know when disaster strikes. These are not always anticipated events in our lives. And that's exactly why we pay into this system.

"To help those who find themselves facing the unprecedented — a death of a dad, an illness, a child who needs extra supports. And all of this — our seniors, people with disabilities, children — they are being redefined by this GOP as waste, fraud, and abuse. Waste, fraud, and abuse.

"But all of you, and we thank you, Mr. Glasgow, for connecting the real human efforts, the people behind Social Security who make this benefit work for people.

"That's what we're supposed to do in public service, and we appreciate you doing it because — Ms. Brown put it best: When Social Security's workforce is decimated, when field offices close, when telephones are no longer answered, when you cannot get what you need online, ‘we would not survive.'

"We're going to remember those words: ‘We would not survive.’ And I don't know if you [Sue Conard] and your mom would have survived at a time when you lost your dad and instead go on to have this amazing career as a nurse. And boy, do we need our nurses at this time as well, but that's a whole other hearing. 

"So why are we here? Why are they stealing the very benefits that people like you have earned across this country? It's because the Republican Party is no longer working for working people. Instead, they are working for a handful of rich donors. And they are making winners and losers. And that winner's circle is getting very, very, very small.

"And in exchange for a $277 million campaign contribution, you get to funnel the money away from the working class, defund the retirement of millions of Americans and the money they have put in there and earned one working day at a time, and then use that money — your money — to cut the taxes for the top 1%.

"Once they have broken our system, then they intend to privatize it. We see the playbook. And then they sell it off to the highest bidder. It is a huge plot to help the rich get richer while everyone else is left behind. And it just comes down to corruption and greed.

"I will briefly share a story from a constituent named Susan who came to my office with a very similar tale. For four decades, she paid into Social Security. She was confident that benefit she had earned would be there for her and her retirement. Now, she is incredibly worried, terrified, about what might be coming. So I'll leave you with her call to action. Susan said: 'Do not let these evil villains destroy our precious democracy so they can pay fewer taxes and keep the rest of us down as a permanent underclass — unhealthy, uneducated, and powerless.'

"I will tell you that, with your testimony today, we do not feel powerless. We feel empowered to be in this fight with you, and we are going to defend everyone's right, not only to this earned benefit, but to opportunity, to freedom, and certainly to a secure and dignified retirement and a benefit that you earned when Americans need it. Thank you again for joining us."

To watch the full hearing, click HERE. 

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