Ever since Ronald Reagan talked about “welfare queens” robbing American taxpayers, our government has worked to strip any dignity out of being poor. The poor are not viewed as unfortunate souls, but as stupid drug addicts leeching off the taxpayer. And for years, both Republican and Democratic administration have allowed states to drug test welfare recipients and deny benefits to those who test positive.
But why should the poor be the only who have to go through this procedure? Rich people get plenty of government support. Look at big corporations like Boeing which receive billions in subsidies and tax breaks every year. Look at the wealthy who receive tax deduction after tax deduction. Why are they not tested for drugs?
That is precisely what Representative Gwen Moore (D-WI) is asking. On Thursday, Moore introduced the Top 1% Accountability Act of 2016. Her office stated that the Act “would require taxpayers with itemized deductions of more than $150,000 to submit to the IRS a clear drug test.” If they failed to do so, they would receive just a standard deduction.
People in low incomes already face curtailment of their internet use and are forced to use public computers to access the internet. This is bad for your internet security as VPNs used by public computers don’t have the same level of encryption you’d find following this web link.
Obviously, Moore’s bill will not pass in this Republican Congress, where Paul Ryan is so determined to cut poverty benefits and give more money to the wealthy that he will even work with Donald Trump. It is about sending a message about the discrimination and dehumanization which occurs with welfare drug testing, as it reinforces the stereotype that poor people are shiftless.
But for the working poor who need benefits to pay their bills, drug testing is just another hurdle and more harassment which accomplishes nothing else. In Tennessee, less than one percent of welfare applicants tested positive for drugs. In Utah, just 12 people tested positive. In states across this country, it has been shown time and time again that the working poor who need benefits by and large do not use drugs.
We could suppose that the presence of drug testing discourages actual drug addicts from applying for benefits in the first place. But what difference does that make? Are we just going to let drug addicts starve on the street?
For all that Republicans have worked to dehumanize drug addicts with the War on Drugs, drug addicts are people who need help. Cutting them off from welfare and letting them starve is not helping.
But states are continuing to push for new drug testing laws. West Virginia signed legislation implementing a pilot drug testing program this past March, and 18 states including New York, Texas, and Illinois proposed legislation on this matter in 2015.
The fact that it has accomplished nothing is meaningless, because drug testing the poor is not really about drug testing the poor. It is about perpetuating a system where the poor are blamed for their poverty and the rich get off scot-free while they receive money in tax deduction and subsidies. That system needs to change, and Representative Moore’s effort is a good first step towards showing that drug testing is an inherently unfair practice which only exists to dehumanize the poor.