Politicians talk a lot about the “social safety net,” but how well does it help the poor? More importantly, how can we make it better? Those questions are the focus of a new report by Angela Rachidi, a research fellow in poverty studies at the American Enterprise Institute, a free market think tank.
The report, “The American Safety Net: A Primer on Welfare Programs for Low-Income Families,” offers a clear and thorough overview of the major U.S. welfare programs, as well as ways they might be improved. Over time, the social safety net has become increasingly complex, growing to at least 80 federal programs costing more than $700 billion a year.
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