Welfare

Bachmann Farm Subsidies: Anti-Handout Rep. Personally Got $250K

Truthdig | Glenn Thrush | Posted 12.22.2009 | Politics


Michele Bachmann has become well known for her anti-government tea-bagger antics, protesting health care reform and every other government "handout" a...

Health Care to Suffer Fate of Welfare, Not Medicare or Social Security

Rupert Russell | Posted 12.21.2009 | Politics


Rupert Russell

Without bringing the middle class into a new entitlement program, the health reform bill is only going to get worse over time, and not better.

Welfare Rolls Climb In New York

nytimes.com | JULIE BOSMAN | Posted 12.17.2009 | New York


Last month, nearly 355,000 people in the city received welfare payments, a 4 percent increase over the year before, according to city officials, who p...

A Depression for the Most Vulnerable

Irasema Garza | Posted 12.16.2009 | Politics


Irasema Garza

While the Obama Administration's recent focus on job creation is a welcome turn in the right direction, it's not a magic wand.

Jobs 1.0: Creating Jobs Without Busting The Budget

James Adler | Posted 12.03.2009 | Los Angeles


James Adler

The experience of the New Deal is instructive. Using stimulus money, LA County has designed a program to create 10,000 new jobs paying $10 per hour for 40 hours per week.

Clive Crook: The American Dream Needs Repair

Clive Crook | Posted 11.16.2009 | Business


Sooner or later the US will find itself grappling with an immense fiscal problem. The recession and stimulus have combined to produce record-breaking ...

Alimony Reform

Fred Silberberg | Posted 11.13.2009 | Living


Fred Silberberg

While the initial concept of alimony was intended to assist someone in taking steps to support himself or herself, our existing system has turned into a system of private welfare.

Food Stamps Will Feed Half Of US Kids, Study Says

AP | LINDSEY TANNER | Posted 11.02.2009 | Politics


CHICAGO — Nearly half of all U.S. children and 90 percent of black youngsters will be on food stamps at some point during childhood, and fallout...

Costco: Food Stamps Will Be Accepted

Seattle Times | Melissa Allison | Posted 10.28.2009 | Business


Costco Wholesale plans to accept food stamps at its warehouse stores nationwide, a major shift for a company that earlier this year said it doubted th...

Welfare Reform for Wall Street

Les Leopold | Posted 10.19.2009 | Business


Les Leopold

Our politicians thrive on chastising the fictitious welfare queens who supposedly turn our hard-earned tax dollars into Cadillacs. But when it comes to Wall Street we let the welfare kings walk all over us.

For 37,000 New York Unemployed, Benefits Will Soon Lapse

nytimes.com | Patrick McGeehan | Posted 10.12.2009 | New York


Tens of thousands of New Yorkers have had the unfortunate distinction of collecting unemployment benefits longer than anyone in the state's history. B...

Unemployed In Las Vegas: Struggling Nevadans Speak

The Huffington Post | Tam Vo | Posted 10.13.2009 | Impact


Writer Becky Bosshart was laid off from her Las Vegas newspaper job while writing a series on the recession and unemployed Nevadans. Nevada is one of ...

Colorado Counties Reject Department Of Human Services' Recommendation To Increase State Control

AP | STEVEN K. PAULSON | Posted 12.01.2009 | Denver


DENVER (AP)- Colorado counties say they will fight any attempt by the state to take over social services following the deaths of several children. Th...

Lessons in Loving While My Father Was Dying

Jason Mannino | Posted 11.25.2009 | Living


Jason Mannino

Fifteen years ago at my grandmother's funeral was the last time I saw my dad. Two weeks ago I was standing in front of him face to face. It wasn't the visit I had hoped for. He had departed his body 3 days earlier, and I was in attendance at his funeral.

The Ugly Truth: Poverty in America

Irasema Garza | Posted 11.12.2009 | Politics


Irasema Garza

As bleak as the poverty figures appear, the Census Bureau's numbers likely underestimate the depth and scale of the problem. Given the scale of the problem facing us, we must address the structural issues that frustrate our efforts to help poor Americans.

When Racism Stands in the Way of Universal Healthcare

Alex Higgins | Posted 09.21.2009 | Politics


Alex Higgins

Opposition to health care reform is just the latest iteration of the usually unstated idea that public welfare itself is a devious system for taking money from whites and giving it to blacks.

The False Premises of "Welfare Reform"

Louise Marie Roth | Posted 08.15.2009 | Politics


Louise Marie Roth

There is growing evidence that the neediest families are falling through the welfare cracks under the new regime, especially in this weak economy.

I Think...

Sam Greenfield | Posted 08.15.2009 | Living


Sam Greenfield

That if you are poor, the government should pay for your education, medical care, housing, clothing, and food. That the richest people in the country...

Today In HuffPost New York

Dan Collins | Posted 08.06.2009 | New York


Dan Collins

When I heard the state of New York is giving welfare payments a tiny bump up, I marveled at how welfare has vanished from the political debate.

Welfare Checks Increase for First Time In 19 Years

New York Times | JULIE BOSMAN | Posted 08.06.2009 | New York


The last time welfare recipients in New York saw an increase in their basic cash allowance, Derek Jeter was in high school, a subway token cost $1.15 ...

Arthur Delaney

Michigan: Surging Unemployment, Shrinking Safety Net

HuffingtonPost.com | Arthur Delaney | Posted 07.27.2009 | Business


Welfare rolls are swelling in states across the country as unemployment rates surge -- except in Michigan. With an unemployment rate of 14.1 percent...

The Bitter Fruit of Welfare Reform

Irasema Garza | Posted 07.24.2009 | Politics


Irasema Garza

Now, more than ever, we need a functioning social safety net -- one that helps families keep food on the table in times of crisis, while providing a toe hold to a more economically secure future.

Welfare Rolls Increasing In 23 Of The 30 Largest States

Wall Street Journal | SARA MURRAY | Posted 07.22.2009 | Home


Welfare rolls, which were slow to rise and actually fell in many states early in the recession, now are climbing across the country for the first time...

States Considering Drug Tests For Welfare Recipients

AP | TOM BREEN | Posted 04.26.2009 | Politics


CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Want government assistance? Just say no to drugs. Lawmakers in at least eight states want recipients of food stamps, unempl...

The Positive Economics of Food Stamps

Don McNay | Posted 04.09.2009 | Business


Don McNay

A program that gives back $1.73 for every dollar spent is a better return than Wall Street is offering.