I would like to see Congress pass a new program into law to replace the former Aid To Families With Dependent Children program, which was passed under FDR in 1935 and abolished in 1996.
Since its abolition, there has been a large increase in the number of people (especially children) living in “extreme poverty” (meaning living on less than $2 per day) and “deep poverty” (meaning at a level half of the official poverty line). It could be paid for by adopting a national wealth tax of 14.25% on all individuals with a net worth of $10 million and higher, which is exactly what Donald Trump proposed in 1999 before he became what I have always believed to be a fake conservative.
In return for receiving this assistance, all recipients would be responsible for doing some type of volunteer work and/or job-training since one thing that both Republicans and Democrats do agree upon is that no one should ever get “something for nothing.”
Stewart B. Epstein
Rochester, N.Y.
The writer is a former Squirrel Hill resident who taught at West Virginia and Slippery Rock universities.