House Budget Chairman Paul Ryan says the $799 billion used for more than 92 government welfare programs is often wasted, since these efforts don't succeed in removing people from poverty.
Ryan, a Republican from Wisconsin, wrote in a statement released by the House Budget Committee that many federal anti-poverty endeavors create a "complex web" that usually keeps poor people down. Most programs in the United States are means-tested, which gives less benefits to families making more money, however slight. This "effectively" discourages some American families from getting better jobs that will give them higher earnings.
"For too long, we have measured compassion by how much we spend instead of how many people get out of poverty," Ryan wrote in the release. "We need to take a hard look at what the federal government is doing and ask, 'Is this working?'"
The former vice-presidential nominee publicized his statements as President Barack Obama prepares to release his budget request on Tuesday, which is slated to contain a proposal to raise federal minimum wage from $7.25 to $10.10. According to Bloomberg Businessweek, Republicans are trying to move away from their image as a cold, rich political party unwilling to accept the nation's poor. Mitt Romney famously hurt his own campaign when he said that "47 percent" of United States residents are "victims" who look to the government for financial aid.
"This report will help start the conversation," Ryan wrote, of the House Budget Committee's information packet. "It shows that some programs work; others don't. And for many of them, we just don't know. Clearly we can do better."
Legislators previously decided upon the nation's financials for the 2015 fiscal year, Businessweek reported.
During a January interview, Ryan said that the "war on poverty," had largely failed.
"We need to make sure it always pays to work," he said earlier this year. "We've got to stop quarantining the poor."
