But the administration’s intervention to bolster the nation’s welfare programs made a decisive difference for millions who otherwise would have fallen through the cracks of the nation’s threadbare safety net. Indeed, expenditures per capita from the earned-income tax credit increased only modestly after the recession hit. Assiduously looking for places to cut spending to temper a growing budget deficit, the White House seems more than willing to pare the safety net. There are plenty of places where the social safety net could be improved. The Russell Sage proposals include everything from a universal child allowance to a renter’s tax credit; from subsidizing employment to a public works program paying a living wage.

Source: New York Times February 20, 2018 15:03 UTC