Donald M. Payne: “Last week, we marked the 50th anniversary of President Lyndon Johnson's war on poverty, which began to pave the way for…”

“Last week, we marked the 50th anniversary of President Lyndon Johnson's war on poverty, which began to pave the way for many of the programs that provided basic human dignities that every American deserves. Fifty years ago, this Congress began to work together on a war against poverty. Unfortunately, today, some of my Republican colleagues have led a different kind of war. Instead of a war to eliminate poverty, it has grown into a shameful war against those living in poverty. These attacks are numerous, from slashing nutrition assistance to cutting unemployment insurance to attacking Social Security, Medicare, and attempting to dismantle health care. Fighting the war on poverty should not be a Democratic or a Republican idea. Not only are we all in this together, but poverty does not discriminate between political parties. According to the Brookings Institution, there are more than 21 million people living in poverty who live in Republican congressional districts. Equally, there are over 21 million people living in poverty in Democratic congressional districts. So the burden is on both parties, equally, to recommit ourselves to creating solutions. The gap between the rich and poor is wide, and it is growing at an alarming rate. Nowhere is this more true than in my home State of New Jersey. In my district alone, the number of households at the top 1 percent have doubled, while the poverty rate has grown to 28 percent.…”