Despite denying any change to normal service or operations, a newly-leaked memo points to crippling changes for Social Security recipients.

Elon Musk's DOGE group has plans to fire thousands of workers and close dozens of offices in many rural communities and small towns across the country – places like Minot, North Dakota in my home state and rural Logan, West Virginia among many others.

On top of that, they plan to drastically cut what business can be conducted over the phone in favor of pushing people to appear in person or go online instead.

But with closed offices and huge staffing cuts, it's going to be hard or impossible to apply for benefits, update information, or just get your questions answered.

Let's be clear: this is failure by design. It's another way to cut benefits and defund Social Security. And it will be particularly harmful for rural and small town Americans.

It's going to mean delayed processing and longer wait times – a huge barrier for older Americans, especially those not living near open offices or where access to reliable internet might not be available.

When Social Security was signed into law in 1935, it lifted millions of seniors out of poverty and provided the backbone for dignity and security in the American dream.

For decades, it was unimaginable that a major political party would try to end the Social Security system, but that's what today's Republicans are gunning for.

But here is the truth: cuts to Social Security will impact rural communities even more than urban communities.

Farmers, ranchers, and laborers need to know they can rely on disability payments from Social Security to make up for lost income should they get injured.

Workers at small businesses often have no access to employer-sponsored retirement plans and are more likely to rely on Social Security when they retire.

And, as a whole, rural communities are getting older, and a larger share of families' total income now comes from Social Security.

Make no mistake: this is not an entitlement. Americans pay into Social Security for their entire working lives, and they've earned this benefit through years of hard work.

As the Social Security Administration joins the growing list of other government agencies facing extreme budget cuts, new confusing bureaucracy, and reckless mass firings, it's clear that their goal is not greater efficiency or competence, it's to defund and disrupt until it no longer functions.

No matter how you slice it, putting seniors and the disabled at risk of losing their Social Security benefits is a true disgrace.

Heidi

Heidi Heitkamp, Former U.S. Senator for North Dakota
Founder, One Country Project