 |
| David Ward |
The 113th Congress starts work today with a clear mandate from voters to rebuild our economy. While we've made some progress over the past four years, there is clear bipartisan agreement that we have not made enough. High unemployment and poverty persist, 93 percent of the wealth created in 2010-2011 went to the top one percent, and the greatest job growth over the next few years is projected to occur in low-wage sectors like direct care, where 47% of the workforce relies on public benefits such as food stamps or Medicaid to make ends meet.
So what are we going to do about this problem? The budget deal that was just passed aims to reduce our national debt. Deficit reduction is an important step toward rebuilding the American economy, but it's no silver bullet. The best way to reduce debt over the long term is to get people to work in quality jobs, where they can earn enough to pay for food and health care rather than being forced to rely on public benefits.
Read the rest of DCA Interim Executive Director David Ward's piece in the Huffington Post--and download our
2013 Congressional Agenda.
