A March 7 brief reveals that the version of income tax rate reduction passed by the House will widen after-tax income disparities between the top one percent and the rest of the population, pushing income disparities to their widest level on record. This is eight times faster than the income growth for the bottom 90 percent of the population.
Conservative doctrine holds that a rising tide lifts all boats.
It's hard to see whether this is true when public policy lifts the yachts clear out of the water. Bush's plan to promote alternative licensing requirements for religious providers of faith-based treatment is cause for alarm. It's likely that Bush did not expect his proposal to encounter as much criticism as it has from the right. Evangelical groups are likely to be hardest hit, given that a religious conversation experience is often an integral part of their mission. Meanwhile, Business Week cites a 1998 National Congregations Study showing that Black churches are far more likely than other congregations to seek public support for social service activities.