But that's the thing: is Social Security a safety net or is it welfare? If it's a safety net, means testing (can at least in principle) preserve the safety net aspect.
If it's welfare, you're transferring wealth from people currently working to those retired, many of whom are much more comfortable than those paying the tax. Why are we transferring wealth to those with more from those who must work?
It's an increasingly common distinction today, and is actually cited as a reason for social securities high support (see: https://www.cbpp.org/research/social-security/top-ten-facts-...):
> Finally, Social Security’s nearly universal nature ensures its continued popular and political support; 79 percent of Americans oppose cuts to the program.
It is not an exaggeration to say that politicians explicitly argue against means testing because they want universality to keep it a third rail and became an increasingly prevalent sentiment during the COVID crisis when money was cheap. For example (https://www.vox.com/2021/10/15/22722418/means-testing-social...):
> “We can choose to strengthen the bond Americans have to one another by proposing universal social insurance benefits that broadly benefit all Americans, or we can pursue complicated methods of means testing that the wealthy and powerful will use to divide us with false narratives about ‘makers’ and ‘takers,’” leaders in the Congressional Progressive Caucus wrote in a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Wednesday.
while simultaneously arguing social security is necessary for the economic security of every family (https://www.vox.com/2021/10/15/22722418/means-testing-social...).
And that's the point: there is a very real portion of the party that, rather than cutting Jeff Bezos', Warren Buffets, Bill Gates' and other wealthy individuals who can survive without the cuts social security would rather raise taxes to pay more benefits because it is good politically. It's absolutely absurd, and highlights how the discussion is manipulated to ensure that social security as a political third rail continues rather than addressing seniors actual needs.
You get to live in a stable society, in relative order, safety, and peace. Your life is (financially) richer than 99.99999% of people in the world. All of this in exchange for a small portion of your wealth, and yet you STILL want to complain about the unfairness of this arrangement?
Push it too far, and the only alternative you're going to get is having to look over your shoulder everywhere you go, living in constant fear that someone will pillage your property and threaten your personal safety.