Like his fellow MAGA Republicans, Chris Christie has pushed for cuts to Medicare and Social Security. Christie’s unashamedly gone after these critical programs and repeatedly made calls to gut benefits for millions of Americans. 

For years, Christie called for major changes to Medicare and Social Security that millions of retirees and Americans with disabilities rely on, including reducing Medicare benefits.  

Christie: “We’re going to have to reduce Medicare benefits. We’re going to have to reduce Medicaid benefits. We’re going to have to raise the Social Security age. We’re going to have to do these things. We’re going to have to cut all types of other government programs that some people in this room might like.’”

CBS News: “To that end, Christie, true to his word, has an ambitious plan to change Medicare and Medicaid. He would also restructure Social Security, changing it from an entitlement to what would effectively be an insurance policy. To that end, he told his audience, ‘We should remember that Social Security should be retirement insurance.’ 

“Besides gradually raising the retirement age to 69, and the early retirement age to 64, Christie proposes that the wealthiest Americans forego a Social Security check. We should have, he said, a ‘modest means test that only affects those with non-Social Security income of over $80,000 per year, and phases out Social Security payments entirely for those that have $200,000 a year of other income.’”

Christie even threatened to campaign against people who wouldn’t call for gutting Medicare and Social Security like him. 

New York Times: “Mr. Christie called for raising the Social Security retirement age and drastically overhauling Medicare and Medicaid – all choices he said ‘no one is talking about.’ ‘It’s put-up or shut-up time,’ Mr. Christie said. ‘If people who I campaigned for don’t stand up and do the right thing, the next time they will see me in their district is with my arm around their primary opponent.’”