posted at 11:21 am on July 13, 2012 by Rob Bluey
The landmark welfare reform law President Bill Clinton signed in 1996 helped move nearly 3 million families off the government dole — the result of federal work requirements that promoted greater self-reliance.
The Obama administration gutted those federal work rules, ignoring the will of Congress by issuing a policy directive that allows the Department of Health and Human Services to waive the work requirements for the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program. “The result is the end of welfare reform,” wrote Robert Rector and Kiki Bradley of The Heritage Foundation.
Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH), author of welfare reform legislation, said in response to the news:
President Obama just tore up a basic foundation of the welfare contract. In exchange for taxpayer-funded TANF payments, the law calls on able-bodied adults to work, look for work, take classes, or undergo drug and alcohol counseling. It’s the tough love that gives people motivation to help themselves.
The administration’s decision follows other recent executive actions on immigration, marriage, religion, education and energy policies. In each case, President Obama has put his own “imperial presidency” ahead of Congress and federal law.
The latest maneuver is particularly alarming given the rising number of Americans who rely on the government for aid. Obama has dramatically increased welfare spending. TANF, the program in question, is just one of more than 70 welfare programs operated by the government at a cost of nearly $1 trillion per year.
Jordan, who leads the conservative Republican Study Committee, last year spearheaded a plan to reform welfare. The Welfare Reform Act of 2011 would require recipients of food stamps to work or prepare for a job, disclose the costs of total federal, state, and local welfare spending, and return welfare spending to its 2007 level once unemployment hits 6.5 percent.
The administration’s action goes in the opposite direction, Jordan warned: “By waiving the law’s requirements, President Obama will make it harder for Americans to escape poverty. He is hurting the very people he claims to help.”
14 comments:
Michelle Obama 'descended from white Irish immigrants'
Michelle Obama's ancestry has been traced back decisively for the first time to white Irish immigrants in the Deep South of the United States.
The First Lady's great-great-great-grandmother, a slave called Melvinia, was made pregnant in 1859 at the age of about 15 by Charles Shields, one of her owners' sons, according to a comprehensive new book.
Shields, who was about 20 at the time, was a descendant of Andrew Shields, a protestant Irish immigrant who fought against the British in the American revolutionary war in the late 18th century.
Mrs Obama was not aware of the family tree uncovered by the book's author, Rachel Swarns, who also alerted a series of white cousins around the US to their genealogical link to the White House.
Swarns, a New York Times journalist, said several black descendants were concerned Melvinia had been forced into a relationship with Shields.
White descendants said they hoped that was not true.
More about the Black Cracker HERE
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/michelle-obama/9337179/Michelle-Obama-descended-from-white-Irish-immigrants.html
Boy, What some people won't do just to get the Irish vote!
unhombre: That's all pretty lame and not really worthy of credulity.
Besides...who cares?
Heritage speaks, the lemmings follow. Once again, Joe, you fail to ask the basic question, is this true?
issuing a policy directive that allows the Department of Health and Human Services to waive the work requirements
Read the directive here and tell me where it waives work requirements.
It allows states to apply for a waiver but they must show that their plan would strengthen the work requirement and improve outcomes. Statements like this are found throughout the document,
Therefore, HHS is issuing this information memorandum to notify states of the Secretary’s willingness to exercise her waiver authority ... to allow states to test alternative and innovative strategies, policies, and procedures that are designed to improve employment outcomes for needy families.
HHS will only consider approving waivers relating to the work participation requirements that make changes intended to lead to more effective means of meeting the work goals of TANF.
The directive allows for more flexibility and innovation at the state level. It gives more power to the states in implementing improved methods of meeting TANF requirements. Republicans should be cheering this and they would if the directive was issued by a Repub.
Waivers were pushed for by two states, Utah and Nevada. Utah, Joe. It's kind of a red state.
"Utah is especially interested in the development of waiver authority in the TANF grant," said a document prepared by the state Department of Workforce Services in July 2011. "Utah has the desire to expend TANF dollars in the most efficient and effective manner supporting the kind of services and activities that promote initial employment, wage progression, and employment retention."
Here's what Michael Willden, the head of Nevada's Department of Health and Human Services wrote,
"Nevada is very interested in working with your staff to explore program waivers...Nevada is also interested in exploring performance measures that ensure program accountability and also increase the probability of families becoming self-sufficient," he added, noting that Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval (R) was "very supportive of the concept."
Obama could come out in favor of the Ryan Budget and you all would twist it into a Socialist, totalitarian takeover of Freedom. Very sad.
Joe, I really hope you read the document. You'll find subversive things like this,
As specified in statute, the purpose of Part A is to increase the flexibility of states in operating a program designed to: (1) provide assistance to needy families so that children may be cared for in their own homes or in the homes of relatives; (2) end the dependence of needy parents on government benefits by promoting job preparation, work, and marriage; (3) prevent and reduce the incidence of out-of-wedlock pregnancies and establish annual numerical goals for preventing and reducing the incidence of these pregnancies; and (4) encourage the formation and maintenance of two-parent families.
Commies! Really, Joe, due diligence. We're here to help.
Joe, Ive been reading you fine blog for about 10 minutes now and I'm kind of surprised at the vile bunch of people who comment here. For a conservative blog author you seem to attract a large percentage of brain-washed idiots here.
I was wondering why. Do you offer them food stamps for every comment they write? Or is it that they were kicked out of the corner hang out in the Barber shop? I can't for the life of me understand why you attract these morons other than they find a place that allows them to disrupt your blog and insult your readers.
The hatred, and personal assaults, and the smears that pours from these Liberal Progressive pinheads is just pathetic. You allow it and you have to accept the results..
My opinion of these fleabags is a simple one.
Liberalism is a severe mental disorder, The direct result of Affirmative Action and the Black "entitlement" programs. Combine that with the abnormally crap of Big Daddy force-feeding these little gimmie some more punks. A perfect example of a pathetic bunch of sniveling "Gimme some" Liberal Sad Sacks who have been and who still are a drain on our society, and a festering pain in our stomachs. My advice to these imbeciles is to put a plastic bag over their head and hold your breath for about 3-5 minutes. You'll feel much better, and so will many of us..
And Joe, I think keeping them around here is not only hurting your blog, but it makes your effort a waste of time, because the readers that you wound want to attract, just won't come here to be insulted by this trash.. You may just as well slam your head against a brick wall. Trying to talk any sense to a Liberal is impossible, it’s pointless and never works.
"THE IMPERIAL PRESIDENT" is Right!!
Obama goes out of his way to apologize for America to our enemies yet he won't take 30 seconds to apologize for his campaign calling Mitt Romney a felon.
Seriously.....What does it say about a president that goes around the world apologizing to everyone in the world for America's acts past and present but refuses to apologize for a mistake his campaign made to another American?
Joe - Looks like an ad for Imperial Margarine to me.
Thanks Joe and have a good one.
I guess we can expect those 'waivers' to get lost in yet another bureaucratic mess. Just because it says 'so' doesn't make it 'so'.
It still sends the same message to those receiving the benefits that you are now not required to work.
Now let's all apply for food stamps now that those requirements have been lowered as well,after all it's stimulative
Wait Craig, this gives the states MORE power?
Why is Joe upset? Possible because he just can't stop salivating at those dog whistles.
MCT: I've never restricted who could come here, and I don't know why these nimrods keep coming. They will never convince me of their warped thought processes.
I am giving considerable thought to culling their numbers, expecially since they have become more and more mindless and irrational.
Joe - You still haven't addressed the fact that everything in your post was factually incorrect.
The presidential directive gives MORE POWER BACK TO THE STATES!
Obama is relinquishing Federal authority and returning it to the states.
Explain to us how you could possibly have any problem with that?
CO: Actually, President BO (the child president) only took the part of the law he didn't like and decided to issue waivers that alow states to apply diffeent tests as "experiments" to see if they could get people back to work.
I would rather congress just repeal the whole law, dump HHS and let the states have total control to adminiser incentives for people to work.
The "general welfare" clause of the Constitution does not mean "general hand-out and freebees."
People who are worse off than Stephen Hawking SHOULD be cared for.
Others should be required to EARN their livelyhood.
The principle here is whether a president can decide which law, or part of a law he doesn't like and just unilaterally change it.
That is the definition of imperialism.
Joe, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) replaced Aid For Dependent Children (AFDC). Before it was replaced, 27 states had requested and where granted waivers to require more stringent work requirements and timelines. The waivers started under Reagan, then G.H.W., to Clinton. By your definition, all Imperialists.
You rightly complain about high unemployment but then dismiss those that can't find a job as lazy neer do wells who should fend for themselves.
That is the definition of today's Conservative.
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