Op-eds

In 1996, President Bill Clinton declared that “the era of big government is over.” 

That same year, then-Sen. Joe Biden (D-Del.) recalled being “pilloried” by his fellow Democrats for “suggesting that there be a mandatory work requirement for anyone receiving welfare.” 

How things change.

...

It used to be a point of agreement that work should come first over welfare, and loopholes that encourage waste and fraud should be closed. 

Today, we can help address the runaway growth of government, close loopholes that encourage waste and fraud, and bring spending back in line with Americans’ needs all at once.

...

First, Congress needs to fix a complicated bit of bureaucratic jargon called broad-based categorical eligibility, or BBCE. In short, 41 states and Washington, D.C. use this loophole as a workaround to allow people to receive food stamps without checking their assets, even if they don’t quality for food stamps. 

With federal bureaucrats opening the loophole, it’s fraud by design. It’s an intentionally created system that allows folks with unlimited assets—even millionaires—to be eligible for food stamps. 

...

And it helped the number of food stamp recipients more than double from 17.1 million in 2000 to 41.1 million in 2022, while the cost of benefits exploded from $17 billion to $119 billion. At least five million people are currently enrolled in food stamps despite not meeting eligibility standards. 

Congress needs to close this loophole. The No Welfare for the Wealthy Act will do just that. 

...

Government assistance used to be a temporary help to those who truly need it, not a free-for-all with the taxpayers footing the bill. For those who are able to work, they should be encouraged and assisted, and prevented from getting trapped in a cycle of dependency. Research shows that welfare recipients who move to a job have seen their income double in the first year, and more than triple within four years. 

...

That’s the spirit of Virginia and the spirit our federal government should be encouraging—the value of work and community, rather than decades of big government inventing new ways to spend as much as possible.  

President Biden’s big-spending, big-loophole, big government has to end. That’s what the people demand from their elected representatives, and that’s what they deserve. 

Continue reading...