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October 13, 2014

Title: The War on Poverty - It's Not what we Expected.
Topic: War on Poverty

Discussed by Rachel Sheffield
with The Heritage Foundation (www.Heritage.org)

Part 1 of 2

FACT: $22 TRILLION has been spent battling the War on Poverty during the last 50 years. This is 3 times MORE than the United States has spent on ALL of our military wars combined since the beginning of our history.

What do we have to show for it?

I believe LBJ had good intentions when addressed the issues driving people into poverty, but the system has become so twisted and corrupt that even some on the left are beginning to question the validity. I really don’t believe that anyone could foresee the mess we are in now, 50 years later.

Rachel Sheffield is a policy analyst with the DeVos Center for Religion & Civil Society at The Heritage Foundation, found at www.Heritage.org Her area of expertise is welfare, marriage and the family, and education.

Listen in as Rachel shares how much Obama wants to spend on the War on Poverty over the next ten years! (HINT: It’s a lot! A whole, whole lot!)

Also, what kind of “extras” do the poor have today? Are they all necessary? Do middle-to-upper class citizen have these “extras”? I know many people far above the poverty line who go without a lot of “extras” these days to make ends meet.

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Title: Part 2 of 2 - The War on Poverty - It's Not what we Expected.
Topic: War on Poverty

Discussed by Rachel Sheffield
with The Heritage Foundation (www.Heritage.org)

Since the War on Poverty began over 50 years ago, the poverty rate has remained, for the most part, the same. There has been some fluctuation here and there, but it really hasn’t changed drastically. Why, then, are so many more Americans on government aid? Well, the answer is a little complex. Rachel Sheffield has researched this extensively and she has some answers.

At the height of the recession in 2009, 96% of parents stated that their children never went hungry. This isn’t meant to downplay the hardships that so many families face every day. However, compared to the rest of the world’s poor, America’s “poor” have it pretty good, especially when you consider all the “extras” they are blessed with like TV’s, play stations, and smart phones.

Rachel Sheffield says that the single most important factor in assuring your children will not grow up in poverty is an intact family. Maybe if we had spent $22 TRILLION on strengthening the traditional American family instead of government programs for the poor, we wouldn’t be in this mess today.

It’s time for pastors and community leaders to step up to the plate and promote the family. It’s time our government leaders, from the City Council to the Oval Office, realize that we cannot keep throwing money at these programs, expecting different results than we’ve experienced over the last 50 years.

You can find Rachel Sheffield’s article on this issue at www.Heritage.org.

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