Only 28% of Americans Agree With Republicans That the Poor Are To Blame For Their Poverty

Chalk this one up as another GOP fail. A HuffPost/YouGov poll has found that only 28% of Americans agree with the Republican people that poor people lack work ethic.

The poll found:

Among all Americans, 44 percent said they think poor people are poor mostly because of a lack of opportunities, while only 30 percent said it’s mostly because of their individual failings. More specifically, 47 percent said poverty has to do more with the fact good jobs aren’t available, while only 28 percent said it’s because poor people have a poor work ethic.

Likewise, 52 percent said most wealthy people got where they are primarily because they had more opportunities, while 31 percent said the wealthy just worked harder than other people.

Republicans have been just trying to justify massive cuts to food stamps, unemployment benefits, and any other program designed to assist the non-rich on the basis that people who are struggling only have themselves to blame. They also justify tax cuts fo the rich based on the myth that rich people work harder, and are more deserving of their success.

People who live in the real world know how it really works. Most people who are wealthy got more and/or better opportunities than others. This doesn’t mean that they didn’t work hard for their success, but it does mean that they didn’t work harder, and are somehow better human beings than everyone else.

Republicans can bend, shape, and twist things in any way they want, but they can’t escape the basic reality. President Obama talks about creating opportunity regularly, because he knows from his own experience that a quality education, or getting into the right training program, can provide a path to success. Opportunity is a game changer.

The GOP is trying to sell America on the Koch vision of opportunity for none, but the American people aren’t buying what they are selling.

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Jason Easley

Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.

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Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association

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