Welfare and Freedom American Style: The Role of the Federal Government, 1941-1980

This book traces the changing role of the Federal Government in the economy and society between 1941 and 1980. The author examines the interplay between traditional American values and the development of the American welfare state. Caputo also analyzes in part how the government justified the use of fiscal policy to bring about improved economic conditions benefiting the country as a whole as well as on the ideal of equal employment opportunity benefiting targeted groups such as black Americans and women. Contents: Introduction; Years of Roosevelt, Years of Truman; The Eisenhower Years; Social Change and the Early Sixties: Kennedy’s Cautious Activism; Social Change in the Mid-to-Late Sixties: The Johnson Years; Johnson’s Declaration of War on Poverty: The Economic Opportunity Act of 1964; The Would-Be Liberal Conservative: Nixon’s First Term; The New Federalism and Welfare Reform: Nixon’s Family Assistance Plan; Eclipsing the Liberal Mandate for Federal Activism: The Political Economy and Cultural Conflicts of the 1970s; Reagan Triumphant: The Election of 1980 and the Conservative Mandate; Conclusion; Notes; Bibliography; Index.