Senate Oks Welfare Cuts For Children Bill Saves $55 Billion, But Receives Bitter Criticism

The Senate completed congressional action on Thursday night on a comprehensive welfare bill that would reverse six decades of social policy, eliminating the federal guarantee of cash assistance for the nation’s poorest children.

The measure goes next to President Clinton, who has said he will sign it.

The vote, 78-21, followed hours of passionate debate. Supporters of the bill said it would free millions of Americans from dependency and save nearly $55 billion over six years, while opponents described a grim future for a million children thrust into poverty.

The debate was bitter and intense, but it changed few minds. Once Clinton endorsed the bill on Wednesday, the outcome in Congress was foreordained.

Twenty-five Democrats voted for the bill, and 21 voted against it. All 53 Republicans voted for it.

Just as the Senate began voting, about 10 protesters in the public galleries started shouting, “Shame, shame, shame!” and they pointed their fingers at senators on the floor below. The protesters were quickly removed from the chamber by Capitol police officers.

The majority voting for the bill was slightly larger than on July 23, when the Senate approved an earlier, similar version by a vote of 74-24. At that time, the Democrats were evenly split, with 23 for the bill and 23 against it. The House approved the final measure on Wednesday, 328-101.

The debate on Thursday was epitomized by the conflicting views of the senators from New York. Alfonse D’Amato, a Republican, said: “Thank God it is an election year. There is one good thing that has come about, and that is welfare reform. Let me also suggest that without there having been a Republican Congress pushing, working, challenging, there is no way that we would have had any opportunity to pass a bill.”

But his colleague, Daniel Patrick Moynihan, who has studied welfare policy for decades, offered a blistering critique of the measure. “I wonder if the nation is ready for the profound social change this legislation will set in motion,” he said.

“This bill is not welfare reform, but welfare repeal,” he added. “It is the first step in dismantling the social contract that has been in place in the United States since at least the 1930s. Do not doubt that Social Security itself - which is to say, insured retirement benefits - will be next.”