By Lisa Kellman
Republican Senators revealed during a press conference Wednesday a new area to cut spending and lower the federal deficit: Welfare.
“What we need to do is to redirect these programs in a way that encourages states to promote self sufficiency, put caps on spending and to make sure what we’re doing is helping those in need,” said Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) who authored the “Welfare Reform Act of 2011.”
This bill would require the President’s budget submission to declare all welfare expenditures, mandate work requirements to the food stamp program, give states that decrease poverty and enhance their self-sufficiency $300 million, and place an “aggregate spending cap” on all expense to return to its 2008 levels.
“The best way to kill these programs and every other federal program out there is to do nothing, allow them to continue to operate on autopilot just as our interest payments gradually cripple our ability to fund everything,” stated Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah).
DeMint noted that the Supercommittee has considered cutting Medicare and Medicaid, but have yet to look at welfare.
“They’re not considering modernizing and looking at the real spending that’s coming from these 77 welfare programs. It makes no sense,” declared DeMint.
According to the South Carolina lawmaker, this new program would help the poor and develop their skills while saving America $2.4 trillion in 10 years.
To avoid concerns that it would hurt the poor during the recession, the bill would be enacted when unemployment falls below 7.5% or by 2015, whichever comes first.