Hey everybody. Welcome back to the Elon Musk
Podcast. This is a show where we discuss
the critical crossroads, the Shape, SpaceX, Tesla X, The
Boring Company, and Neuralink. I'm your host, Will Walden Urb
Warnock. Thank you, Chairman Crapo.
Mr. Bizikmano, welcome to you and to your family present
today. Congratulations on your
nomination. Thank you for meeting with me in
my office a couple weeks. Ago I enjoyed that and.
Thank you. I look forward to continuing our
our conversation. I want to follow up on some of
the issues that we discussed in my office when we met.
I shared with you my strong view that retirees in Georgia who
rely on Social Security deserve reliable, timely delivery of
their full benefits with world class customer service.
And you've got a long record of delivering that in in the
private sphere. That's why so many Georgians and
I were alarmed looking at what's happening last month when
several news outlets reported that Elon Musk and his Doge team
announced on their own website plans to permanently close 5
Social Security customer service offices throughout Georgia.
These closures in Brunswick, Columbus, Gainesville,
Thomasville, and Vidalia would give Georgia the highest number
of planned Social Security office closures of any state.
Those five cities represent 5 counties with over 136,000
people who rely on Social Security benefits.
But since I raised the alarm, since I made some noise about
this, though, just suddenly out on XI, guess that's what you
call the platform now denying the closures that it posted on
his own website. They they posted those closures
on their website. And now no one seems to know
what's true or whether or not these announced closures will
affect Georgians access to their benefits or other services.
So, Sir, I I know that you aren't currently at the Social
Security Administration, and perhaps you can't speak to the
plans hatched by Elon Musk or Doge without you, but if you're
confirmed to lead the agency, Americans deserve to know who
will actually be in charge of their benefits.
I think we heard an answer from you a moment ago from my
colleague, but I'm going to ask you again for the record, where
will the buck stop on this decision, specifically with
respect to office closures? As someone who represents the
state where they announced 5 closures, I made noise about it.
It was on their website. Then they withdrew them and
acted like I made it up. They put it on their website.
I just need to know when it comes to office closures, who's
going to be making that decision?
You are Elon Musk. Me.
That's, that's a good answer. And so I I hope to be able to
follow up with you. And I'm 100% available for you,
Sir. What was that?
I'm 100% available for you. Thank.
I, I appreciate that. And and, and and not with, you
know, I appreciate that, but it's but so that the seniors in
my state, those are the folks I'm concerned about.
Yeah, my own. Two of us.
And others will will you commit to keeping all field offices in
my state open for Georgia seniors?
You know, I, I, I asked this question more than one time
today and what I will commit to is that there will be no
decision made without you knowing about it.
I have no intent to close field offices, but I've studied
nothing on the topic, so it's a little hard to commit to
something. What's?
I think study is a good thing. And what we've seen so far is no
study, no real knowledge about what's going on, just an effort
to close offices to be able to announce that you're addressing
waste, fraud and abuse. And we all know this is true
regardless of whether they're Democrats or Republicans,
because then they had to go back and rehire some of the people
they fired. And you're a businessman, Sir.
And you said earlier you you wouldn't operate in in this way.
The reason I'm asking about these field offices and these
announce changes because it could lead to an increase of 7
million visits to field offices per year across the country.
The fact that they're now not allowing you to call on the
phone an estimated 200,000 additional visits in Georgia
alone, which is why, frankly, I think that it's a that is a
terrible idea. But if confirmed, will you
commit to increase staffing at Georgia field offices to account
for this massive expected increase in appointments and to
help ensure Georgians can easily and efficiently make
appointments? Let me be clear about what I'm
asking you, you if, if, if you're no longer able to call on
the phone, which is a decision that's already been made and you
got to go online or go to the office and actually have it an
in person appointment, you're going to have a backlog.
So I want to know what's the answer to that?
How is it that I can assure the seniors in my church that their
lines are going to get longer and longer?
I disagree with the Commerce secretary who said, well, if his
mother-in-law missed a check, she wouldn't worry about it.
I guess she wouldn't. Her son in Will you make sure
that they have access to find out what's going on with the
benefits that they have earned? Senator, first of all, thank you
very much. You know, I've spent my career
overseeing financial institutions and today I serve
3500 financial institutions in America and that means we have
community banks, rural banks and I know what it means to have to
serve neighborhoods and also serve rural communities.
You know, my commitment is that it will be a fact based, rule
based organization. We run that, we will ensure we
have the staffing to get the best level of service for our
constituents. So I'm, I'm giving you a longer
answer, but we will have the talent that we need to get the
job done at a service level better than today's.
I I appreciate the answer. I'm just trying to get Georgia
residents, senior citizens, the benefits that they have earned.
No one's giving them anything they've paid into the system.
Thank you so much. Thank you.
Appreciate it. Thank you.
Senator Blackburn. Thanks for listening to the Elon
Musk Podcast today. I appreciate your support and I
appreciate you spending the time here with me today.
Now, if you could take a second and hit the subscribe or follow
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Also, please take care of yourselves and each other and
I'll see you in the next one.