Joe Biden skewers Donald Trump with scathing takedown about 'hatchet job'

has for the first time explicitly attacked - accusing the President of "taking a hatchet” to Social Security.

The former president tonight weighed in on a critical issue for millions of Americans as he took to the stage at the national conference of Advocates, Counsellors and Representatives for the Disabled in Chicago. The Democrat said: "In fewer than 100 days, this new administration has done so much damage and so much destruction. It's kind of breathtaking. They’ve taken a hatchet to the Social Security Administration.

"They’re shooting first and aiming later. They want to wreck it so they can rob it. Why do they want to rob it? In order to give tax cuts to billionaires and big corporations."

Mr Biden, 82, has largely avoided speaking publicly since leaving the White House in January. However, Democrats across the nation today offered similar warnings for what they described as a Social Security Day of Action. It concerns cuts .

While Mr Trump, 78, continues to blame Mr Biden for many of the nation’s problems and often attacks his predecessor by name, the former leader has only made a handful of public appearances since leaving office. This is despite Mr Trump's move, early on in his second tenure, to slash the government workforce, including thousands of employees at the Social Security Administration.

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Following Mr Biden's brutal takedown, Mr Trump's press secretary Karoline Leavitt took a shot at the former president’s age. She said: "I’m shocked that he is speaking at nighttime. I thought his bedtime was much earlier than his speech tonight."

But Ms Leavitt confirmed Mr Trump will continue to take strides at making changes to the Social Security system in the US. She said the President is this week expected to sign a presidential memorandum "aimed at stopping illegal aliens, and other ineligible people, from obtaining" Social Security benefits.

And speaking ahead of Mr Biden's address in Chicago, Democratic House leader Hakeem Jeffries had said: "This is an all hands on deck moment, which is why President Biden’s voice in this moment is so important."

The US leader caused fury last week when . The brutal move to make the immigrants leave the country caused unrest in communities across the country. An advocacy group described the leader as "lawless" and it said he was "abusing systems" with the alarming move.

Skye Perryman, president and CEO of Democracy Forward, an advocacy group which has challenged various Trump administration efforts in court, said her organisation would likely sue over the Social Security numbers, once more details become available. Ms Perryman added: "This President continues to engage in lawless behavior, violating the law and abusing our systems of checks and balances."