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In a new written statement provided to APR, Republican gubernatorial nominee and U.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville, R-Alabama, defended his recent comments<\/a> deriding Social Security as a \u201cscam\u201d and fired back at criticism from his Democratic opponent in the Alabama governor\u2019s race, former U.S. Senator Doug Jones.<\/p>\n Tuberville began his statement by responding to critics who highlighted that the senator himself has received $93,000<\/a> in Social Security benefits over the past three years.<\/p>\n \u201cThe people receiving Social Security aren\u2019t the problem,\u201d Tuberville told APR. \u201cI paid into Social Security for decades, just like millions of working Americans. I earned those benefits, and if you paid in, you ought to get every dime you\u2019re promised too.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe scam is Washington\u2014decades of taking your money, spending it, making promises they know they can\u2019t keep, and refusing to fix the problem before our kids and grandkids ultimately get stuck with the bill,\u201d Tuberville continued.<\/p>\n Tuberville\u2019s comments align with his recent speech on the Senate floor, where he argued that the Social Security Trust Fund will become insolvent in five years and that U.S. adults would be better off investing their retirement savings in the stock market.<\/p>\n \u201cJust look at the projections from SSA. Social Security\u2019s own trustees say the retirement trust fund is headed toward depletion in 2032,\u201d Tuberville said. \u201cAfter that, incoming revenue would cover only about 78 cents of every dollar in scheduled benefits. My opponent wants to attack me for telling people there\u2019s a problem. Well, I\u2019d rather tell the truth and fix it before the next generation gets the bill.\u201d<\/p>\n Tuberville also responded to recent comments<\/a> from Jones in which the Democrat claimed Tuberville would look to privatize the Retirement Systems of Alabama if elected the state\u2019s next governor.<\/p>\n