Reich conflates welfare

Robert Reich, in his editorial “How blue states help red states” (Nov. 17), conflated welfare programs with Social Security, Medicare and unemployment insurance under the umbrella of “social insurance.” By doing this, he could credibly state that the majority of Americans oppose cuts to the programs.

What he conveniently left out is that 83 percent of Americans polled, according to federalsafetynet.com, believe there should be a work requirement or job training attached to welfare benefits. If we asked seniors receiving benefits if they see themselves as “welfare recipients,” I’m sure we could expect a resounding, “No.” Same is true for those receiving jobless benefits. We’ve been led to believe that since we paid into those systems, directly or indirectly, we are entitled to the benefits (actually, only employers pay for U.I. benefits, but not everyone is aware of this).

Democrats have historically fought reforms to welfare programs, accusing Republicans of “hating” the poor and minorities. It’s interesting that we hear voices of concern for Social Security and Medicare running out of money, but never do we hear that welfare could run out of money!

Craig Detmer

Spokane