By: Michael Achterling (North Dakota Monitor)
North Dakota U.S. Rep. Julie Fedorchak told tele-town hall attendees Tuesday that Social Security benefits will not be cut as part of a budget proposal in the U.S. House.
The virtual event was the first forum open to the general public Fedorchak has hosted for constituents since being elected in November.
“Social Security is not being cut. It’s not on the table for any cuts at all,” Fedorchak said. “I want to work my time as your representative in Congress to ensure that we reform these programs so they are available for the long term to the people who have paid into them and to the people who deserve to have them.”
A statement from the Democratic-NPL Party noted that Fedorchak did not address reports of Department of Government Efficiency plans to close Social Security field offices or cut phone support. The Minot Social Security field office is among federal leases listed for potential cancellation, The Associated Press reported.
Democratic-NPL Party Committeeman Jamie Selzler, who asked the Social Security question, said in a statement he appreciated Fedorchak taking his call.
“I respect that she was willing to take tough questions and didn’t handpick callers,” Selzler said, though added he thinks Fedorchak is “abdicating her responsibility” to provide oversight of the administration.
In response to a Bismarck woman concerned about how Medicaid cuts would affect her son with disabilities, Fedorchak laid out House Republican plans for $400 billion in Medicaid savings over the next decade to help keep the program solvent for future generations.
“We’re looking to make reforms to the program so we can preserve it and protect it for the people that need it the most, like your son,” Fedorchak said. “The way it’s growing right now is unsustainable, so if we don’t make some reforms, it’s going to collapse.”
She said audits of Medicaid recipients against eligibility requirements could save $100 billion for taxpayers. Work requirements for able-bodied Medicaid recipients between ages 18 to 55 could save another $300 billion, she added.
“I don’t think North Dakotans are participating in the program that shouldn’t be, but this is a problem in other states and it’s costing the program hundreds of billions of dollars,” she said.
A Mapleton woman asked Fedorchak how cuts to the Department of Education will impact rural schools.
Fedorchak told the woman that the goal of President Donald Trump’s administration is to return control of education to parents, school boards and the states.
“That’s where responsibility for education long belongs,” Fedorchak said.
She also explained that taxpayers were funneling money to local schools through the department and the department was “taking a cut.”
“What President Trump wants to do is eliminate the middle man,” she said.
Fedorchak said, with more state and local control over school funding, she believes the education outcomes for children will improve. She also believes eliminating the department will cut through a lot of bureaucratic red tape and barriers to programs and funding.
“By eliminating those strings, they can put those dollars to use in the best way possible to meet the needs of our schools, our kids and our teachers,” Fedorchak said.
Republican members of Congress have come under fire in recent weeks, including Bismarck, for not holding in-person town hall events for their constituents.
In response to an online question about why she wasn’t doing town halls in person, Fedorchak said the virtual event gives her an opportunity to reach more North Dakotans. She said more than 3,000 people had registered for Tuesday’s event, with potentially more watching the livestream.
Fedorchak also described recent meetings she’s held in North Dakota, including meeting with the tribal councils of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and Spirit Lake Nation, as well as the Bismarck-Mandan Chamber of Commerce and state corn growers.
Fedorchak said she plans to continue holding tele-town halls in the coming months to hear concerns from voters.
The Democratic-NPL Party is hosting its own in-person town hall at 7 p.m. Thursday at the Sanctuary Event Center in Fargo.
The event will feature testimonials from residents impacted by the recent federal government workforce and funding reforms. It will also give residents a chance to write their concerns down on paper so they can be compiled together and mailed to North Dakota’s federal delegation, said Cheryl Biller, executive director for the Democratic-NPL Party.
