Examining Extreme & Deep Poverty in the U.S.

Claims of extreme poverty and widespread deep poverty are based on faulty information. These unfounded claims promote alarmism that generates pressure to increase welfare spending and benefits. Sound public policy cannot be based on misinformation. Even worse, misinformation distracts from the real issues facing the welfare state: the prevalence of self-defeating and self-limiting behaviors such as low levels of educational attainment, low levels of marriage and work, criminal activity, drug and alcohol abuse, and poor home environments for children. These conditions generate a need for welfare assistance in the first place and undermine human well-being.