Let's look at history for a second. Clinton said as early as 1992 during his campaign that it was time to end welfare as we know it. During the first two years of his administration when he had a Democratic Congress to work with, he never proposed it. Had it not been for a Republican Congress elected in 1994, there would never have been welfare reform, and Clinton vetoed it twice before signing it the third time around.
A quote from Bill Clinton in 1996 after vetoing one of the bills:
That's the smartest president in America since JFK you see talking there.We want a bill that actually is welfare reform. You can put wings on a pig, but you don't make it an eagle. We want real welfare reform.
Here's what he had to say after finally signing the welfare reform bill after two vetoes:
But he signed it anyway. And when he signed it the Democrats were livid. Check out what some of the prominent Dems in the senate had to say about it.At the beginning of this very Congress, some wanted to put poor children in orphanages and take away all help from mothers simply because they were poor, young and unmarried. Last year the Republican majority in Congress sent me legislation that had its priorities backward. It was soft on work and tough on children.
It turns out that the reform has been quite a success. And today, a little over ten years later, Bill Clinton writes how "we" ended welfare together. Bill Clinton was dragged kicking and screaming to this. His party was livid over this, and they went to the convention that year demanding that he fix it. But now he'll be happy to take credit for it.BRAUN: This day, in the name of reform, this Senate will do actual violence to poor children, putting millions of them into poverty.
MOYNIHAN: I pray God when those children end up on the streets roving in bands, out of control, threat to themselves, danger to others, that we remember what we did.
MOAKLEY: It puts another million children into poverty and doesn't go far enough.
FATTAH: There will be members who will come to the floor today because they want to be reelected and will vote for it.
CLAYTON: We care about children too much to rob Paul to pay Peter.