Social Safety Net

The Conservative Case for the Social Safety Net

Income inequality in America is the highest it’s been since Census Bureau started tracking it more than 5 decades ago. That disparity is more than a social justice issue.  To maintain our free market system, citizens must perceive fairness of opportunity and must have incomes adequate for fueling our economy. The Social Safety Net began in response to the great depression of the 1930’s both as a humanitarian reaction to need and as a means to shore-up our economic stability. 

The Federal Government established a number of safety net programs, including:

·   Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, SNAP (food stamps), Worker Disability Insurance, Unemployment Insurance and Education Loans. 
·   Programs for individuals retiring from the military.
·   Earned Income Tax Credit, direct payments to low-income people below a certain threshold.

As the baby boomers leave the workplace, more and more demands will be placed on younger wage earners for age-related entitlements. We could solve the problem if we were to tax all earnings with no cap on higher wage earners and include dividends and interest income in those assessments.

Health care comprises 17.7 percent of this country’s GNP and costs continue to rise.  Because health care expenditures are not responsive to market competition, we must embrace new means of cost management. Decision-making based on long-term impact has always been a conservative value.