"There is no law of nature or principle of economics or constitutional provision that dictates such a high number of people in poverty within the richest nation in the history of the world.
"Census data released Tuesday provides clear evidence of the choice that’s been made. The number of people with incomes below the poverty line in 2022 rose by 15.3 million. The poverty rate for children more than doubled — from a historic low of 5.2 percent in 2021 to 12.4 percent in 2022.
"The United States has just experienced the largest spike in child poverty since the current models for measuring economic distress were developed in 2009. All of the record gains made against child poverty over the previous two years have been erased.
"The reason for this extraordinary rise in poverty? Not the pandemic. Not a vicious recession. Not an economic depression. Not a huge increase in the numbers of people unemployed. In fact, employment is high.
"The reason, according to the Census Bureau, is the refusal by Congress to renew the enhanced child tax credit that was developed during the Covid-19 pandemic. That expiration was a policy choice."
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"Matthew Desmond is a professor of sociology at Princeton University, where he specializes in the study of poverty. His 2016 book Evicted won the Pulitzer Prize for its incisive examination of poverty and housing policy in America. He joins Preet to discuss his new book, 'Poverty, by America', and the many ways poverty is entrenched in one of the world’s wealthiest nations."
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