you have it almost right Kc, except one small detail.  The general fund does pay into social security. It pays interest on the $2.9 trillion that the crooked politicians borrowed from SS. The interest on those securities is about $145 billion annually (5% of $2.9T).  So the general income tax is paying that interest. The social security "trust" fund consists almost entirely of these IOUs.  Thank you very much to both parties.  Bottom line, there is nothing trustworthy about the SS "trust" fund.  It's gone unless and until someone pays it back.