WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) released the following statement on the annual reports to Congress from the Medicare and Social Security trustees:

“These reports share some of the hard truths I have laid out since I first came to Congress. We need to work together to strengthen Social Security and Medicare so they can still be here for future generations. But it is a sad state of affairs when my Republican colleagues seem to only be concerned about deficit spending and exercise fiscal discipline when they don’t control Congress or the White House. This became clear when they abandoned common sense and embraced fantasyland economics to pass  $2.5 trillion in unpaid tax cuts that primarily benefit the wealthy and corporations, who continue to spend their tax cuts on share buybacks instead of investing in our workforce. It is time for members of both parties to come together to address our long-term fiscal situation and find a balanced solution that assures the success of these two vital entitlement programs.”