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July 9, 2002

Republicans Are The Party of Compassion

How Welfare Reform Helped Mary from New Jersey

In 1996, Republicans reformed welfare and lifted millions of Americans out of poverty. Even more compelling than the statistics, however, are the stories of the individual Americans whose lives were turned around by Republican welfare reforms.

Mary is a 23-year old domestic violence victim and a single mother of two small children. Mary turned to welfare in 1995.

The TANF (Temporary Aid for Needy Families) program provided childcare and transportation for Mary, enabling her to obtain a high school diploma and gain acceptance to a community college. Her TANF case manager arranged a part-time, on-campus job for her. Mary received childcare support and Medicaid that allowed her to complete her Associate's degree without interruption. Mary went on to William Patterson College where she would participate in the Alternative Work Experience Program - a combination of work experience and training activities. In 2000, after extensive consultation with her TANF case manager, Mary decided that she would obtain a full-time job and attend college at night. Since Mary had lost her driver's license, her case manager accessed Welfare-to-Work funds to provide transportation for her.

In July 2001, Mary's driver's license was reinstated with the help of her case manager, and she started working full time. Mary's children are receiving post-TANF childcare and Medicaid, which has allowed her to concentrate on work. Today, Mary is earning $25,000 a year and counts as another welfare reform success story.

For 30 years, Democrats fought a losing War on Poverty. Thanks to a Republican Congress, America is finally winning that war.

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Adapted from information provided by the office of Rep. Frelinghuysen (R-NJ)

[The underlined text indicates hyperlinks in the electronic version of this RPC paper.]

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