Byron Dorgan: “I rise to support the work first amendment offered by Senator Daschle. This issue is not, as is often portrayed, a…”

“I rise to support the work first amendment offered by Senator Daschle. This issue is not, as is often portrayed, a caricature about Cadillac welfare queens whom we have heard about over a couple of decades of debate about the welfare system. The stereotype we hear about is this clipping of a Cadillac welfare queen, living in some big city, collecting a multitude of checks with which to buy a Cadillac and color television, and living the life of leisure. That is not what this debate is about. It is about a welfare system, and this is a serious subject, that affects the lives of many, many people. This is the right subject. The welfare system does not work very well in this country. It does not work very well for the taxpayers, because there are able-bodied people who make welfare a way of life and should go to work. It does not work very well for those on welfare because it encourages them to stay there rather than go to work. It does not work well for kids, who are the most important element in this issue.”