March 22, 2025
Dear Friends,
Over just two months in office, Donald Trump and his billionaire co-President Elon Musk have run roughshod over the rule of law — using federal law enforcement to illegally silence and even deport their critics while bypassing Congress to impose devastating cuts to the essential services American families rely on.
This week, I hosted my second town hall of the year at Schenectady High School, where thousands of you showed up, tuned in, and spoke out with passion and anger against Trump and Musk’s reckless dismantling of our government. I’m deeply grateful to everyone who made their voices heard. Amidst all the noise and distraction, know this: I will always be in your corner, and I will never stop fighting for the working families of the Capital Region and for a future we can all believe in.
One of the many constituents who joined me at this week’s town hall was an employee at the Albany field office of the U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA), who described the devastating impact of Trump and Musk’s ongoing Social Security cuts on families here in our Capital Region and beyond. Social Security is the backbone of our nation’s social safety net, ensuring seniors can retire with dignity and providing critical support to millions of children and people with disabilities.
In January 2025, 73 million Americans — more than 1 in 5 — received benefits from Social Security, including more than 167,000 right here in New York’s 20th Congressional district. That includes over 127,000 retirees and more than 9,400 children. These individuals depend on Social Security to live full, healthy lives — but Trump and Musk aren’t looking out for them. Instead, they’re waging a massive assault to discredit Social Security, paving the way for benefit cuts to fund their tax breaks for the ultra-wealthy.
Recently, the SSA announced plans to slash 7,000 jobs, or more than 12 percent of the agency’s workforce — a move that is expected to force the closure of dozens of Social Security field offices nationwide. With staffing already at a 50-year low, SSA employees are warning that these cuts will mean significantly longer processing times for benefit and disability applications, as well as increased wait times over the phone and at in-person visits. Meanwhile, Trump and Musk’s handpicked cronies at SSA are abusing their power — accessing Americans’ private information, wrongly declaring living beneficiaries dead and seizing their rightful benefits, and forcing millions of seniors to undergo unnecessary in-person verification at now-gutted field offices just to access the benefits they’ve earned.
These actions must be stopped, and I’m using every tool at my disposal to protect the programs and benefits Americans rely on.
In recent months, I’ve cosponsored several pieces of legislation to protect these essential services, including the Keeping Our Field Offices Open Act, which would prevent Trump from closing SSA field or hearing offices, and the Beneficiary Data Protection Act, which would stop DOGE and other political appointees from accessing sensitive SSA databases. I’ve also joined my colleagues in demanding that the Acting SSA Commissioner halt office closures, reverse devastating staffing cuts, and preserve phone-based customer service. And just yesterday, I joined a rally and candlelight vigil outside the Schenectady SSA field office to protest Trump and Musk’s attacks and raise public awareness of their devastating impact. I will always keep fighting with everything I have to protect Social Security — because millions of lives depend on this earned benefit.
By slashing Social Security, Donald Trump and Elon Musk have once again gone back on their pledge to make life easier and more affordable for Americans. Working families deserve better than more broken promises and betrayals. When I took my oath of office, I solemnly pledged to defend the Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic. I will never betray the oath I made to you and to our country. I’m proud to stand together with all of you in this fight to protect our neighbors, uphold our values, and safeguard our democracy.
As always, thank you for reading.
Your friend,
DID YOU KNOW?
My office and I are working to make sure you remain informed with the latest updates, announcements, and recommendations from governments and agencies. With that in mind, here is some information that may be of interest to you:
- Many taxpayers in New York State can file their federal taxes for free directly with the IRS, using IRS Direct File.
- Despite rumors to the contrary, Direct File is still live and available throughout this year’s tax season.
- Last year, 96% of New Yorkers who used Direct File reported a positive experience with the program.
- An estimated 3.4 million New Yorkers are eligible to use Direct File this year.
- Taxpayers who have certain types of income, such as gig, rental, or business income, or who earned wages above a certain threshold, are ineligible for Direct File at this time.
- You can check your eligibility for Direct File HERE.
- If you are not eligible for Direct File, the IRS has other free resources to help you file your taxes this season.
