Republican primary election is now taking place in the US; it will lead to the choice of the candidate to run against Barack Obama in next presidential election.
The fight against welfare State has always been a strong point for the Grand Old Party. Its voters think welfare State is the symbol of the Government invasion, the refusal of the American way of Life, the denial of the Self-made man myth.
The social protection system adopted in the US bases on some of the pillars inherited by civil rights fights, such as “Medicare” (a program supporting old people) and “Medicaid” (a program supporting low income people). Furthermore, the system has been recently modified by the so-called “Obamacare” health reform, strongly desired by the President.
Against this background, what candidates speak about welfare? What importance do they give to it? How do their positions differ from each other? In order to find an answer to such questions, we have analysed candidates’ web sites and we have calculated how many times the words “Welfare”, “Medicare”, “Medicaid” and “Obamacare” appear in the different sites. The result of our study is summarised below .
Then, we have attentively analysed the proposals.
Libertarian and radical Ron Paul refuses the idea that the Parliament may regulate both citizens’ life and the US economy. He thinks it is necessary to gradually abandon welfare system and cut public expenditure.
Rick Santorum, characterised by a strong religious sentiment, proposes to freeze for five years spending for social programs. He believes that, in order to control costs, quality and the creation of new jobs, American health system should be market-driven.
According to Newt Gingrich, social security can be achieved only by extending the possibilities of American citizens to invest in private insurances and by managing social programs on a local level. He does not deny the importance of social security, but he refuses what he calls “Welfare Empire”, that is the central control of health and social programs.
Finally, Mitt Romney, considered as the favourite candidate, in an interview with Fox News said he plans to distribute among the States the resources of Medicaid, because he believes they are more capable of “taking care of their poor” and, especially, of preventing abuses and frauds. However, he has also confirmed a cut to social and health expenditure higher than 800 billion dollars. “I do not think that the poor will feel damaged by that”, he said.
On the inside: