HuffPost

This week, the president finally gave it to him.

By Daniel Marans

President Donald Trump walked into a carefully laid trap on Wednesday, when, in an interview on CNBC, he suggested he was open to cutting Social Security and Medicare.

Asked by “Squawk Box” host Joe Kernen whether “entitlements” ― a Washington term for universal social insurance programs ― would ever be “on his plate,” Trump responded that they would.

“At some point they will be,” Trump said in the interview from Davos, Switzerland. “At the right time, we will take a look at that.”

It’s unclear if Trump even knew of exactly what he was speaking.

And the White House denied that was his intention. “With no benefit cuts, President Trump is keeping his commitment to the most vulnerable Americans, especially those who depend on Medicare and Social Security,” White House spokesman Judd Deere said.

But Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who is vying for the chance to take on Trump as the Democratic presidential nominee, didn’t waste time using it against him.

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