many times
many times i have referenced
president obama's
designer
to cut social security to forge a grand bargain
because
my belief
uh... in his administration they perceive this
has
part of
a silo that needs to be filled
to ensure a legacy
and i've used as an example
the clinton welfare reform
which
to the extent that is every referenced
as part of his legacy
in the media
it is always reference as a positive
and people of asme
when you talk about why it's so bad
why that welfare reform turned out so bad
and as if i owned q
jason depart all uh...
and the new york times
wrote a piece uh...
two days ago
welfare limits left poor addressed as recession hit now
the irony is
as at all times i hear about clint welfare reform
out of president clinton's name is being used in this one
in the end of fifteen page story
well i could about it
but he does right
perhaps no law in the past generation has drawn more praise to the dr to and
welfare as we know
he quoted
there was no repeated many times by bill clinton
which joined it late nineties economic boon to send caseloads plunging
however this program built it is reputation
when times were good
he writes arizona is one of sixteen states that have cut their welfare
caseloads further since the start
of the recession in two thousand eight
contemplate this
it just shows you how bad this welfare reform was
we have almost double the rate
of
unemployment
maybe even more if you want include uh... the uh... excessive numbers of
people leaving the work force
in the past four five years
yet sixteen states
have cut their welfare rolls
how is that possible
even as a turned away the needy arizona spent most of its federal welfare
dollars on other programs
because the federal government
change the way it offered
poor people who were dropped from cash assistance here mostly single mothers
topless surprising openings
about the desperate sometimes a legal way they make me ends meet
it's old food stamps
sold blood skipped meals shoplifted
doubled up with friends
scavenge trash bins for bottles and cans return to relationships unbound partners
hall with children in tow
the old program
was aid to families with dependent children
he gave states unlimited matching funds and offered poor families extensive
rights with few requirements
in no time limits
the new program
temporary assistance for needy families
created time limits
and work rules cap federal spending and allows states to turn poor families away
so you fall the dynamic that's different there
states used to being cards to help poor people
now they're being discouraged
rules that allow poor people
we're desperate
to sign up have now been tightened to make the requirements that much harder
him out of time
they could spend on welfare
was capped
peter album
law professor at georgetown university who resigned to the clinton
administration a protest law
said my take on that was states would push people often i let them back on and
that's just what they did
it's been even worse than i thought it would be
when jobs were plentiful in nineteen ninety six in the early days of the
program
a subset of families appear disconnected left with neither welfare or work
those numbers have surged since that time
one-in-four low-income single mothers is jobless and without cash aid
roughly four with uh... million women and children
one prominent supporter of the tough welfare law
ron haskins
a guy who helped write it for the republicans
is worried that it may i think uh... increase destitution among the most
disadvantaged families
i'm sorry this piece is renewed year ago
in twenty twelve
the biggest problem welfare reform
we ought to be paying attention to it he said
he's back in ninety six
issue is can you create a strong program as we did without creating a big problem
at the bottom
and we have what appears to be a big problem obama
none of this program has worked in the way that it's busted recession began in
two thousand seven
uh... opposed a new test to the claim
that welfare reform works
even the five billion dollars in new federal funds caseloads chiz rose
fifteen percent for the lowest level in two generations
compared with the nineties
national welfare rolls are still down by sixty eight percent
we've kept people off welfare
but we have more poor people
more people who are even more desperately poor
more people who are
how did you go on for tickets
to substitute in some way
because that's where the federal government still gives the money
that's why we've seen surges in welfare and food stamps
substrates took new steps to keep the media way
p shortened time limits tighten eligibility rules and reduce benefits
so they would have to spend more money
the states get fixed federal grants for uh...
for the the poorest people
so any case load growth comes at their own expense
federal government pays the entire food stamp bill
so states in courage applications they re just push them off
so this is an example of how uh... clinton's welfare reform failed us
and in fact
it simply being used now as obliging to certain people are busy food stamps
roles
in that
it is part of clinton's legacy that is hailed
that's why the au bar maid ministration is seeking to cut so scary
because they know they will get praise for regardless of its implications
regardless of how much it devastates people's retirement
please any reduction soc care you also that the fact that
the productions
in the private elements of people security uh... so all we're going to see
is
social security
constituting a greater amount of seniors income in their retirement in the future
and that amount being glass
in real dollars
uh...