Generally: you're couching Social Security and Medicare as contractual obligations between taxpayers and the US government, which removes them from the same domain as entitlement payments, where your status as a warm body in poverty qualifies you.

I agree with that completely.

They're still too expensive to support with the current numbers given the national debt. Inflation has made both very costly to support.

Q: "what are social security and medicare's portion of the US budget in 2026?"

A:

In the 2026 federal budget, Social Security accounts for approximately 23% of total federal spending, making it the largest single government program. Medicare makes up about 14% of the budget. Together, these two programs represent more than one-third of the entire $7 trillion federal outlay.

1/3 of the federal budget to support retirees.