: "Welfare now went to the less than totally deserving who were expected eventually to work" (Berkowitz and McQuaid, 1988, p. 205).
The Kennedy administration believed that one of the major contributing causes of poverty was a lack of skills. Also, dependency on public welfare created a vicious cycle which diminished the motivation of the poor and perpetuated a culture of poverty. To address these issues, policymakers developed job training programs for the poor (e.g., the Jobs Corps, the Neighborhood Youth Corps, etc.) and programs that helped instill positive values in young people. Acknowledging the necessity of providing more coverage for low-income families, the Kennedy administration also created the Food Stamp program and endowed states with the power to include married couples (with unemployed heads of households) in the AFDC (Aid to Families with Dependent Children) program. In addition, Congress passed a measure that added a rehabilitation services component to AFDC. At the time of his assassination, Kennedy had formulated major plans to escalate his efforts at reducing poverty.
Lyndon Johnson stepped into the void created by Kennedy's assassination determined to carry out the battle against poverty. Not only did Johnson fulfill Kennedy's legacy, the new president became a strong, personal advocate of public welfare assistance. As Johnson announced in his State of the Union address to Congress in 1964: "This administration today, here and now, declares unconditional war on poverty in America . . . Our aim is not only to relieve the symptoms of poverty, but to cure it, and above all, to prevent it" (Rank, 1994, p. 16).
Johnson's war on poverty resulted in sweeping legislative changes. In 1964, Congress passed the Economic Opportunity Act. This Act was t
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