George --

Henry Weinschenk claims that "what holds them [i.e., the poor] back are internal factors more than external conditions." I say to my friend Henry: what makes you think so? This is, after all, a pretty sweeping conclusion to draw about a complicated problem like poverty. What about those who are unable to work because of medical conditions? What about children? What
about women separated from, or abandoned by, their husbands who must find a way to support their children while spending time bringing them up too?

It is true that some poor people make bad decisions. It is also true that there are significant barriers to opportunity. In addition to those listed above, these include low entry-level wages, lack of affordable housing and health care, and inadequate systems of public transportation. And inadequate public assistance when that is needed.

Henry claims that a family living on TANF has much more than $354 per month to get by on. My challenge to Henry stands: propose a monthly budget for a mother and two children relying on welfare for their support. I am not asking you to live on it. Just work up the numbers. Then work up another budget for the same mother supporting two children on a full-time minimum
wage job. That will tell us what reality looks like for these families. Then lets talk about "what really holds them back."

The idea that we can effectively address the problems of poverty by providing moral guidance (and continuing to limit public assistance) is not new. We have tried it before. The purpose and effect of this approach has been to keep the poor down and preserve the status quo. That's not my vision for the Democratic Party in the 21st century. I think we can must seek new ways to give life to our basic values, particularly our belief that we are all in the same boat, all members of the same community. Even the poor.

Ed Wayland (electronic mail, April 6, 2000).