The Expanding Welfare State – Over 100 Million Now On Some Form of Federal Welfare

Why hasn't "Acorn" arranged for this fellow to live - at government expense - in a Five Star Honolulu hotel? 

http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2012/09/welfare-pays-for-hawaii-hotels-and-5.html

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The following chart contains this footnote: "Figures include anyone residing in a household in which at least one person received a program benefit." I have lived in multiple person households in which only one person was receiving "some form of federal welfare." 

Similarly, note that Medicaid recipients are not excluded from the "100 million welfare recipient" (as Social Security and Medicare recipients are) even though 42% of Medicaid recipients are senior citizens receiving convalescent care, not anything like the traditional "welfare profile" popularized by American "conservatives."  In any event, the Republican enumeration charted below is significantly inflated. 

Here is an accurate assessment of "welfare recipients." 

http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2012/09/at-most-20-of-americans-receive-welfare.html

At the following webpage, Media Matters critiques the Republican chart (below) while assuming its validity. 

http://mediamatters.org/blog/2012/08/09/today-in-dishonest-fox-charts-government-aid-ed/189223)

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The Expanding Welfare State – Over 100 Million Now On Some Form of Federal Welfare

August 8, 2012

By Lonely Conservative

This is depressing news, at least if you aren’t a progressive hell-bent on transforming the United States into a massive welfare state. There are now over 100 million Americans on some form of federal welfare, not counting Social Security and Medicare.

The chart is from a new report by Senate Republicans that’s due out some time today. The Weekly Standard has a preview:

“The federal government administers nearly 80 different overlapping federal means-tested welfare programs,” the Senate Budget Committee notes. However, the committee states, the figures used in the chart do not include those who are only benefiting from Social Security and/or Medicare.
Food stamps and Medicaid make up a large–and growing–chunk of the more than 100 million recipients. “Among the major means tested welfare programs, since 2000 Medicaid has increased from 34 million people to 54 million in 2011 and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, or food stamps) from 17 million to 45 million in 2011,” says the Senate Budget Committee. “Spending on food stamps alone is projected to reach $800 billion over the next decade.”

This is by design. Why else would the Obama administration be spending so much money advertising food stamps, and encouraging people to hold parties to get more people onto the government dole. Even worse, many non-citizens are also receiving benefits. It’s disgusting.

http://lonelyconservative.com/2012/08/the-expanding-welfare-state-over-100-million-now-on-some-form-of-federal-welfare/

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