January 5, 1949.
President Harry Truman delivered the State of the Union address and announced his “Fair Deal” for the nation, a comprehensive array of social program proposals including universal health insurance and a dramatically increased federal minimum wage.
Flash forward to 1962 when just 6% of Americans received means-tested public assistance. Now? Try 35%, Save Jerseyans.
What the hell happened?
The culture of “dependency” happened. And even back then, conservative Republicans were out there trying to warn their countrymen against the folly of big government adventurism. Sadly, their sage concerns fell on deaf ears. The result? A nearly bankrupt country (economically and morally) with falling international prestige and a leader who openly promotes wealth distribution while lecturing the wealth-generators that they’re not actually responsible for their own stolen prosperity.
This vintage November 1949 satirical poem published by the Associated Press was prophetic; I wonder how the President would respond?
