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The Incremental Revolution: Ronald Reagan and Welfare Reform in the 1970s

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  19 December 2013

William Crafton
William Crafton*
Affiliation:
Washington, D.C.
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Journal of Policy History , Volume 26 , Special Issue 1: Perspectives on Conservatism , January 2014 , pp. 27 - 47
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Copyright © Donald Critchlow and Cambridge University Press 2013 

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References

NOTES

1. Levy, Frank, “What We Can Teach the U.S. About Welfare Reform,” in American Politics and Public Policy, ed. Burnham, Walter Dean and Wagner-Weinberg, Martha (Cambridge, Mass., 1978), 344.Google Scholar

2. Reprint of a radio program entitled “Welfare,” Folder: Speeches and Writings–Radio Broadcast Taping, 18 October 1976, “Welfare” (1 copy) Reprint, Pre-Presidential Speeches, box 2, Ronald Reagan Presidential Library (hereafter RRPL).

3. Robert A. Moffitt, “The Negative Income Tax and the Evolution of U.S. Welfare Policy,” June 2003, NBER Working Paper Series, vol. w9751, 2003, accessed on 17 January 2013, http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=414249#/.

4. “Welfare Reform,” Folder: Speeches and Writings, Radio Taping–9 January 1978, 4/4, Pre-Presidential Speeches, box 18, RRPL.

5. Legislated as part of the Social Security Act of 1935 as Aid to Dependent Children (ADC), the program initially provided aid for the children of widows. Congress gradually transformed the program into the nation’s primary income-support program for needy families, expanding coverage to a needy child’s caretaker in 1950 and changing the name to AFDC, allowing states the option of expanding coverage to families with jobless parents through AFDC/AFDC–Unemployed Parent (AFDC-UP) in 1961, and expanding eligibility to any other individual deemed essential for a child’s upbringing in 1968. The program was replaced with the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program in 1996. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, “A Brief History of AFDC,” Department of Health and Human Services, accessed 17 August 2011, http://www.aspe.hhs.gov/hsp/AFDC/baseline/1history.pdf/.

6. Patterson, James T., America’s Struggle Against Poverty: 1900–1985 (Cambridge, Mass., 1986), 171.Google Scholar Patterson notes that enrollment in AFDC increased due to several factors, including the number of AFDC-eligible Americans enrolling in the program and two Supreme Court rulings striking down certain state eligibility restrictions. Ibid., 178–79.

7. “The Low Income Population: What We Know About It. A Statistical Profile,” Memorandum to then President from Joe Califano, 23 March 1977, Office of Staff Secretary, box 13, folder: 23 March 1977, Jimmy Carter Presidential Library (hereafter JCPL).

8. “To Honorable Members of the Legislature, from: Gordon P. Smith, Director of Finance,” 11 December 1967, Ronald Reagan Gubernatorial Papers, 1966–75, Governor’s Office Files, Cabinet Office Files (Ed Thomas)–General: Environmental Protection and Health and Welfare Agency (2), box: GO 8, Folder: Health and Welfare (2/4) Governor’s Office-Cabinet Office Files-General, RRPL.

9. Reagan to Members of the California Legislature, 19 March 1970, Governors Papers–Welfare Reform, Folder: Welfare ’70 (3 of 6), RRPL.

10. “Interview with California’s Governor Reagan: Welfare: America’s No. 1 Problem,” 1 March 1971, U.S. News & World Report, 36–40, 36–37.

11. “Town Hall, Los Angeles,” 3 March 1971. Gubernatorial Papers, 1966–75, Governor’s Office Files, Cabinet Office Files. Public Affair United. Welfare Reform Unit–Welfare Reform Proposals, box: GO 108. Folder: Welfare Reform Committee (3/4). RRPL.

12. Governor’s statement to California Legislature on welfare, 21 March 1968, Folder: Welfare 1967 (3 of 3) Governor’s Papers–Welfare Reform, RRPL and “Interview with California’s Governor Reagan,” 37.

13. Governor’s Statement to California Legislature on Welfare, 21 March 1968.

14. “Memorandum from Spencer Williams to Mr. Win Adams,” 1 November 1967, Gubernatorial Papers, 1966–75, Governor’s Office Files, Cabinet office Files (Ed Thomas)–General: Environmental Protection and Health and Welfare Agency (2), box: GO 8. Folder: Health and Welfare Agency (1/4), RRPL.

15. Ibid.

16. “Memorandum from Ken Hall to Win Adams,” 8 November 1967, Gubernatorial Papers, 1966–75, Governor’s Office Files, Cabinet office Files (Ed Thomas)–General: Environmental Protection and Health and Welfare Agency (2), box: GO 8, Folder: Health and Welfare (2/4), RRPL.

17. Ibid.

18. “Cabinet Minutes,” 14 November 1967. Gubernatorial Papers, 1966–75. Department of Finance Files. Deputy Director’s Office Files. Welfare–Welfare (1), box: F170. Folder: Welfare (4 of 11). RRPL.

19. Brian Steensland has written a comprehensive history of the FAP and guaranteed income proposals of the 1970s. See The Failed Welfare Revolution: America’s Struggle Over Guaranteed Income Policy (Princeton, 2008).

20. Nixon, Richard, “Address to the Nation on Domestic Programs,” 8 August 1969, Richard Nixon: The Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States, 1969 (Washington, D.C., 1971), 639.Google Scholar

21. Richard Nixon, “Address to the Nation on Domestic Programs,” 639.

22. Congressional Quarterly, “Welfare Reform: Disappointment for the Administration,” Congressional Quarterly Almanac, 26, 1970, 91st Cong., 2nd sess. (Washington, D.C., 1971), 1030–41, 1030.

23. Congressional Quarterly, “Welfare Reform: Disappointment for the Administration,” 1030, and Richard Nixon, “Address to the Nation on Domestic Programs,” 640.

24. Burke, Vincent and Burke, Vee, Nixon’s Good Deed: Welfare Reform (New York, 1974), 1.Google Scholar

25. Steensland, The Failed Welfare Revolution, 127.

26. Burke and Burke, Nixon’s Good Deed, 130.

27. Congressional Quarterly, “Welfare Reform: Disappointment for the Administration,” 1030.

28. “Statement of Governor Reagan,” not dated, Ronald Reagan Gubernatorial Papers, 1966–75, Governor’s Office Files, Cabinet Office Files. Public Affairs Unit [Welfare Clippings] (1) and [Welfare–HR 1] GO 105, Folder: Welfare–General (4 of 4), RRPL.

29. Reagan also noted, “The bill carries all the hallmarks of those open-ended welfare programs of the 60s—such as Medicare and Medicaid—which are now causing both the federal and state governments such serious, virtually insolvable financial problems.” “Response to question No. 6 of Senator Long,” 30 April 1970, Ronald Reagan Gubernatorial Papers, 1966–75, Governor’s Office Files, Cabinet Office Files (Ed Thomas)–Transfer of Operations and [Welfare] WIN program, box: GO 19, Folder: Welfare Reform Act [H.R. 16311] (1/4) Governors’ Office Cabinet Office Files–General, RRPL

30. “FACT SHEET: The Family Assistance Act of 1970 (HR 16311),” 20 April 1970, Ronald Reagan Gubernatorial Papers, 1966–75, Governor’s Office Files. Public Affairs Unit. Program and Personnel Requirements (2)–[Welfare–Clippings] (1), box: GO 104, Folder: [Welfare–Background/News Releases (2)], RRPL.

31. While AFDC provided states significant flexibility in setting income and eligibility guidelines, federal law prohibited states from requiring recipients to work in exchange for their benefits. In order to do this, California would have to receive approval of its proposed work requirement through a “waiver” from HEW.

32. Spivak, Jonathan, “Nixon and Reagan Seem Headed for Clash on Welfare; Result Could Affect ’72 Race” Wall Street Journal, 8 June 1971.Google Scholar

33. Memorandum to Earl Coke from Lucian B. Vandegrift,” 20 August 1969, Ronald Reagan Gubernatorial Papers, 1966–75. Department of Finance Files. Director’s Office Subject File. Welfare (3)–Wildlife Conservation Board–Annual Report, 1968, box: F159, Folder: Welfare–General, RRPL.

34. Ibid.

35. Ibid.

36. Congressional Quarterly, “Welfare Reform: Disappointment for the Administration,” 1032.

37. “Office of the Governor, Release #248,” 5 May 1970, Ronald Reagan Gubernatorial Papers, 1966–75, Governor’s Office Files, Cabinet office Files (Ed Thomas)–Transfer of Operations and [Welfare] WIN program. GO 19, Folder: Welfare Reform Act [H.R. 16311] (2/4) Governors’ Office Cabinet Office Files–General, RRPL.

38. Letter from Governor Reagan to President Nixon, 29 April 1970, Ronald Reagan Gubernatorial Papers, 1966–75. Department of Finance Files. Deputy Director’s Office Files. Welfare–Welfare (1), box: F170, Folder: Welfare (10 of 11), RRPL.

39. Ibid.

40. Burke and Burke, Nixon’s Good Deed, 177.

41. Congressional Quarterly, “Welfare Reform: Disappointment for the Administration,” 1032.

42. Ibid., 1031.

43. Schultz, William, “California Cleans Up Its Welfare Mess,” Reader’s Digest, August 1973.Google Scholar

44. Robert Carleson, “Stemming the Welfare Tide,” an oral history conducted in 1983 by Gabrielle Morris, Regional Oral History Office, The Bancroft Library, University of California, 1986, 25–28.

45. Ibid., 50.

46. Ibid., 40. To keep the task force secret and maintain the appearance of normalcy, Carleson stated that he delegated his daily assignments to others, signing official letters and papers after hours. Robert Carleson, e-mail message to author, 19 October 2005.

47. Cannon, Lou, Governor Reagan: His Rise to Power (New York, 2003), 349.Google Scholar

48. Ibid.

49. Meese would later serve in the White House as Reagan’s chief of staff and later as attorney general.

50. Carleson, “Stemming the Welfare Tide,” 41.

51. Ibid., 41.

52. Cannon, Governor Reagan, 352, and “Tough Trading Breaks Executive-Legislative Deadlock on Welfare and Medi-Cal,” California Journal (July–August 1971): 193–95, 195.

53. “Memorandum from John L. Burton to Governor Reagan,” 6 April 1970, Ronald Reagan Gubernatorial Papers, 1966–75. Governor’s Office Files. GO–Research Files (Molly Sturgis Tuthill) Health & Welfare–Welfare 1970 (2)–Health & Welfare, 1972 (3), box: GO 186, Folder: Research File-Health and Welfare–Welfare 1971 (Welfare Reform) (6 of 6), RRPL. Burton and his brother, Phillip Burton, both had a tremendous effect on social policy in California. See Jacobs, John, A Rage for Justice: The Passion and Politics of Phillip Burton (Berkeley and Los Angeles, 1995).Google Scholar

54. Cannon, Governor Reagan, 351.

55. Press Release, 3 March 1971, Governor’s Papers–Welfare Reform, Folder: Welfare 1970 (1 of 2), RRPL.

56. Reagan to Members of the California Legislature, 19 March 1970, Governors Papers– Welfare Reform, Folder: Welfare ’70 (3 of 6), RRPL.

57. “California Welfare Reform Program: Fact Sheet,” not dated, Reagan Gubernatorial Papers, 1966–75. Department of Finance Files. Deputy Director’s Office Files. Welfare–Welfare (1), box: F170, Folder: Welfare (4 of 11), RRPL.

58. “Memorandum from Bob Moretti to Governor Reagan,” 28 June 1971, Ronald Reagan Gubernatorial Papers, 1966–75. Governor’s Office Files. GO–Research Files (Molly Sturgis Tuthill) Health & Welfare–Welfare 1970 (2)–Health & Welfare, 1972 (3), box: GO 186, Folder: Research File–Health and Welfare–Welfare 1971 (Welfare Reform) (4/6), RRPL.

59. Cannon, Governor Reagon, 357–59, and “Tough Trading Breaks Executive-Legislative Deadlock on Welfare and Medi-Cal,” California Journal (July–August 1971): 193–95 (194).

60. CWRA also prohibited illegal aliens from receiving aid and imposed a residency requirement on California residents. If a resident left the state for more than sixty days, their benefits would be cut on the presumption that they had relocated to another state. Department of Social Welfare Press Release, 24 September 1971, Folder: Welfare Social Administration (1968–69) (1 of 3), Governors Papers–Welfare Reform, RRPL; Levy, “What Reagan Can Teach Us About Welfare Reform,” 351; and Cannon, Governor Reagan, 359.

61. Nixon, Richard, “Remarks at the Republican Governors’ Conference,” 19 April 1971; Richard Nixon: The Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States, 1971 (Washington, D.C., 1972), 553.Google Scholar

62. Congressional Quarterly, “Welfare Reform Deleted From Social Security Bill,” Congressional Quarterly Almanac 28, 1972, 92nd Cong., 2nd sess. (Washington, D.C., 1971), 899–914, 900.

63. “Impact of HR 1 in California: An Example,” 13 November 1972, Ronald Reagan Gubernatorial Papers, 1966–75, Governor’s Office Files, Cabinet Office Files. Public Affairs Unit [Welfare Clippings] (1) and [Welfare–HR 1], box: GO 105, Folder: Welfare–HR 1 (1), RRPL.

64. “Letter from Governor Reagan,” 1 May 1970, Ronald Reagan Gubernatorial Papers 1966–1975, Governor’s Office Files, Cabinet office Files (Ed Thomas)–Transfer of Operations and [Welfare] WIN program, box: GO 19, Folder: Welfare Reform Act [H.R. 16311] (1/4), Governors’ Office Cabinet Office Files–General, RRPL.

65. “Memorandum from Jim Jenkins to Governor Reagan,” 18 August 1971, Ronald Reagan Gubernatorial Papers, 1966–1975, Governor’s Office Files, Cabinet Office Files. Public Affairs Unit [Welfare Clippings] (1) and [Welfare–HR 1], box: GO 105, Folder: Welfare-HR 1 (1), RRPL.

66. Ibid.

67. “Welfare-Work Plan OK’d for California,” not dated, Ronald Reagan Gubernatorial Papers, 1966–1975, Governor’s Office Files, Cabinet Office Files. Public Affairs Unit [Welfare Clippings] (1) and [Welfare–HR 1], box: GO 105, Folder: Welfare–HR 1 (1), RRPL; and Cannon, Governor Reagan, 353.

68. “Memorandum from Jim Jenkins to Ed Meese et al.,” 17 August 1970, Ronald Reagan Gubernatorial Papers, 1966–1975, Governor’s Office Files, Cabinet Office Files (Ed Thomas)–Transfer of Operations and [Welfare] WIN program, box: GO 19, Folder: Welfare Reform Act [H.R. 1611] (4/4) Governors’ Office Cabinet Office Files–General, RRPL.

69. Statement of Governor Ronald Reagan, accompanied by Robert Carleson, 1 February 1972, Hearings on the Social Security Amendments of 1971, U.S. Senate Committee on Finance, Serial 92–7, 1873–74.

70. Ibid., 1873.

71. Ibid., 1879.

72. Ibid., 1882.

73. Ibid.

74. Congressional Quarterly, “Welfare Reform Deleted from Social Security Bill,” 904.

75. Steensland, The Failed Welfare Revolution, 177–78, and Burke and Burke, Nixon’s Good Deed, 187. On SSI, see Erkulwater, Jennifer, Disability Rights and the American Social Safety Net (New York, 2006)CrossRefGoogle Scholar, and Berkowitz, Edward and DeWitt, Larry, The Other Welfare (New York, forthcoming).Google Scholar

76. Many in the Nixon administration and Senate Finance Committee agreed that these beneficiaries should not be stigmatized as “welfare recipient.” Nixon noted in 1972, “And while we’re talking about welfare, let us quit treating our senior citizens in this country like welfare recipients.” Steensland, The Failed Welfare Revolution, 177.

77. “Nixon’s 11th Hour Effort to Salvage FAP,” Human Events, 12 February 1972; and Lou Cannon, “Reaganism on the Potomac,” August 1974, Ronald Reagan Gubernatorial Papers, 1966–75, Governor’s Office Files. GO–Research Files (Molly Sturgis Tuthill) Health & Welfare–Welfare 1970 (4)–Health & Welfare–Youth Authority (2), box: GO 187, Folder: Research File–Health and Welfare–Welfare, Federal (4/5), RRPL.

78. Weinberger was initially brought to Washington to serve as Commissioner in the Federal Trade Commission and as Director of the Office of Management and Budget. He later served as Secretary of Defense under Ronald Reagan from 1981 to 1987.

79. Schultz, “California Cleans Up Its Welfare Mess.”

80. Interview with Robert Carleson, 15 April 2005, and Schultz, “California Cleans Up Its Welfare Mess.”

81. “Income Support Program: 1974 HEW Welfare Replacement Proposal, Technical Analysis Paper No. 11,” Office of Income Security Policy, U.S. HEW Office of Income Security Policy, A3.

82. “Letter from Governor Reagan to Governor Wallace,” 30 December 1974, Ronald Reagan Gubernatorial Papers, 1966–75, Governor’s Office Files. GO–Research Files (Molly Sturgis Tuthill) Health & Welfare–Welfare 1970 (4)–Health & Welfare–Youth Authority (2), box: GO 187, Folder: Research File–Health and Welfare–Welfare, Federal (5/5), RRPL.

83. Memorandum to the President from Bert Lance, 27 July 1979, Office of Staff Secretary, box 41, Folder: 1 August 1977 [2], JCPL.

84. “Carter’s Welfare Reform I,” Typescript, Folder: Speeches and Writings–Radio Taping–1977, 27 September, 2/3, Pre-Presidential Speeches, box 14, RRPL.

85. The Carter administration maintained its campaign commitment to welfare reform, calling on Congress to enact two, more incremental welfare reform proposals: the Work Training and Opportunities Act (WTOA) and the Social Welfare Reform Amendments (SWRA) of 1979. These bills, substantially cheaper at $5.7 billion, sought the reform of existing programs in order to provide national standards, expanded benefits, and the creation of 700,000 jobs. As the economy reached double-digit inflation in 1980, enactment of any expansion in the welfare system proved impossible.

86. In 1981, the National Journal observed, “Throughout his 17 years as a national political figure, Ronald Reagan’s rhetoric and world view have remained consistent. What apparently has changed is the number of people who agree with him.” Kirschten, Dick, “The ‘Revolution’ at the White House: Have the People Caught up with the Man?” National Journal 13, no. 5 (29 August 1981): 1532–36, 1533.Google Scholar

87. The passage of the CWRA provided Reagan the opportunity to champion himself as a budget-conscious spokesman for the middle-class taxpayer. In 1974, Reagan claimed that CWRA had saved taxpayers $2 billion, removed 350,000 recipients, and increased welfare benefits by 41 percent (although, a state analysis was more conservative, estimating that it saved the state $35 million in 1972). The public appeared to respond favorably to Reagan’s calls for tightening eligibility and work requirements. The Santa Monica Evening Outlook stated that Reagan needed “the support of the good people of California more than ever. The people who pay taxes and who are not on relief, and who have both a humanitarian and a material interest in getting as many people as possible off the relief rolls and into productive jobs.” The Los Angeles Herald–Examiner reported widespread enthusiasm for CWRA among state and county officials and The San Diego Union-Tribune wrote, “In the Reagan proposals we find a sound blueprint for rebuilding the system around a framework of responsibility, in terms which give greater emphasis to the problems of the truly needy.” Ronald Reagan, California’s Blueprint for National Welfare Reform, I; “Tough Trading Breaks Executive-Legislative Deadlock on Welfare and Medi-Cal,” California Journal, July–August 1971, 193–195, 195; “Gov. Reagan’s Brave Try for Welfare Overhaul,” Santa Monica Evening Outlook, 10 March 1971; “Favorable Reaction to Reagan Plan,” Los Angeles Herald-Examiner, 4 March 1971, A2; and “Reagan Plan Would Rescue State,” San Diego Union-Tribune, 20 March 1971.

88. OBRA, as well as tax cuts enacted through the Economic Recovery Tax Act (ERTA), represented the heart of what has been referred to as the “Reagan Revolution.”

89. OBRA also prohibited payments to illegal immigrants, those participating in a strike, and families with assets of more than $1,000, excluding a home and one automobile. White House Staffing Memorandum, Re: summary of the reconciliation bill or 1981, H.R. 3982, David Gergen Files, OA 10520, 10521, box 2, Folder: Budget 1981–Gramm Latta/Reconciliation [1] OA 10521, RRPL and Demkovich, Linda, “Political and Budget Pressure Sidetrack Plan for Turning AFDC Over to States,” National Journal 13, no. 38 (19 September 1981): 1671–73, 1672.Google Scholar

90. “Welfare Benefits Cut By Reconciliation,” 1981 CQ Almanac, 474 and “States Moving to Get Welfare Recipients to Work,” New York Times, 26 September 1981, A10.

91. Frank Levy noted that Reagan’s gubernatorial reforms represented “a series of increased adjustments which ‘tilted’ the system away from recipients with earnings towards recipients who did not work, while it tightened administrative procedures.” Levy, “What Reagan Can Teach Us About Welfare Reform,” 360.

92. Part of Clinton’s effort “to end welfare as we know it,” this legislation replaced AFDC with Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, a block grant program operated by states that included a sixty-month lifetime benefit limit and work requirements.