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2017 Clearinghouse Rev. 1 (2017)

handle is hein.journals/clear51 and id is 1 raw text is: A s one presidential administration ends and another begins, the United States finds itself at a historic crossroads. Leaving the White House is the first and only African Amer- ican president of the United States-1 of 45 presidents in a 238-year period that covered legal slavery, the Civil War, Re- construction, Jim Crow, and the civil rights movement. Pres. Barack Obama was also the first Democratic president since Pres. Bill Clinton signed off on welfare reform in 1996. The historical significance of the Obama presidency is difficult to dispute. Pres. Donald Trump comes into office hav- ing made some history of his own, mostly for his unconventional campaign and the racially charged rhetoric that he used throughout. Given that he has no track record in government and that his cabinet nominees thus far have been openly hostile to the supports-affordable health care, a living wage, robust enforcement of civil rights-that low-income people need most to move out of poverty, our expectations for the federal government under the new administration are at best uncertain. President Trump's job is to lead not some, but all people living in our country, and we and our colleagues at the Sargent Shriver National Center on Poverty Law intend to make sure that everyone's voice is heard on important issues affecting them and their communities, especially those who have historically had difficulty being heard. Poverty persists, and our country, espe- cially our country's leadership, must face this challenge. Although 2015 saw a dip in poverty numbers, the fact remains with a racial justice lens, especially in light of an incoming administration that has expressed hostility to this type of focus. To take stock of the current presidential transition, we first consider the roles that the executive branch, the states, and civil legal aid attorneys have in improving the quality of life and opportunities Poverty persists, and our country, especially our country's leadership, must face this challenge. that more than 43 million people in this country live in poverty.' Native Americans and African Americans are nearly three times as likely as whites to be included in this population; Latinos, twice as likely.2 What is more, 6.1 percent of Americans live in deep poverty, which is income at half the federal poverty level, a meager $12,150 for a family of four.3 Given the impact that poverty has on communities of color, we must consider policy solutions 1 Dan Lesser, Good News. Bad News on Poverty in the United States, SHRVER BR IEF (Sept. 13, 2016); Press Release, U.S. Census Bureau, Income Povert and Health Insurance Coverage in the United States: 2015 (Sept. 13, 2016). 2 Talk Poverty, Basic Statistics (2016). 3 Id.; U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' U.S. Federal Povert Guidelines Used to Determine Financial Eli gibilit for Certain Federal Programs (Jan. 25, 2016). of low-income people. After reviewing President Obama's progress on poverty and civil rights over the last eight years, we offer recommendations for action by the executive branch, the states, and legal aid during the next presidential administration. The Roles of the Executive, the States, and Legal Aid The executive branch plays an extraordi- narily important role in fighting poverty in America, particularly given the discretion it enjoys in enforcing federal law. Civil rights laws are a bulwark against invidious discrimination but only if those laws are consistently and widely enforced. An important moral test of a presidential JANUARY 2017CLEARINGHOUSE ARTICLE I CLEARINGHOUSE ARTICLE I JANUARY 2017

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