General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsKansas Republicans spent a decade attacking social assistance. Now they are shocked at the results
Republican governors waged a decade-long attack on social services provided to families and those who are needy. The Republican playbook remained the same: setting up guidelines requiring that recipients return to work in set timeframes, that work requirements be built into the programs, and that they heckled those who didnt agree.
In Kansas we can see the results: Grift is at record levels in Republican businesses. Meanwhile, the Republicans were so concerned about how these funds could be misused that they pushed through legislation about how and where the money could be spentlike on cruise ships and casinos. When Republican states focused on how to make sure people couldnt get access to social services, they set themselves up for an outright disaster. When COVID-19 hit, states under Republican leadership that focused on these issues were completely unprepared to reverse course on their strategy and get assistance to the people. Now the results are devastating. The Republican response, in essence, is: Lets put forward more ideas about making it difficult for families in need to get help.
The latest Kansas Republican push is tie the length of time you can receive unemployment benefits to the statewide unemployment rate. There are of course, major problems with this, as the Kansas Reflector points out:
Tying unemployment benefits to the unemployment rate is problematic, explains Donna Ginther, a University of Kansas professor who has been giving me (and others) a crash course on economics.
https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2021/2/24/2017884/-Kansas-Republicans-spent-a-decade-attacking-social-assistance-Now-they-are-shocked-at-the-results?detail=emaildkre
Aristus
(66,434 posts)I get nervous flying over Kansas. Don't think I'll drive through it any time soon, lest my hard-earned money helps prop up any business keeping that misbegotten state breathing...
aka-chmeee
(1,132 posts)I'd love to return the favor.
DFW
(54,426 posts).....before they realize what they have done to themselves.