WSJ: McGurn: Tim Scott and the ‘Great Society’

WSJ: McGurn: Tim Scott and the ‘Great Society’
“But judging from the barrage unleashed on Sen. Tim Scott afterward, the South Carolinian hit a liberal nerve”

Tim Scott and the ‘Great Society’
The Wall Street Journal Opinion
William McGurn
October 2, 2023

“…But judging from the barrage unleashed on Sen. Tim Scott afterward, the South Carolinian hit a liberal nerve when he trained his own fire on Democratic Party orthodoxy by targeting the failure of the Great Society.

“‘Black families survived slavery,’ Mr. Scott said. ‘We survived poll taxes and literacy tests. We survived discrimination being woven into the laws of our country. What was hard to survive was [President Lyndon] Johnson’s Great Society, where they decided to put money—where they decided to take the black father out of the household to get a check in the mail.’
…

“Here the reaction was more telling than the remarks. Rather than rebut Mr. Scott’s assertion with evidence, critics responded with sneers. The Washington Post’s Jennifer Rubin wrote that Mr. Scott revealed ‘the MAGA movement’s desperation to rewrite history and reclaim victimhood for Whites.’ Of all the ‘deplorable things’ Republicans said, the New Republic chimed in, Mr. Scott’s remark may have been the worst.

“But the cheapest shot came from Nikole Hannah-Jones, who writes for the New York Times Sunday magazine. She is better known as the creator of the ‘1619 Project,’ though she has backed off her initial claim that America’s true founding wasn’t 1776 but 1619, when the first slaves came ashore.

“’Imagine being Black and running in a political party where you believe you need to disgrace your ancestors to have a chance,’ Ms. Hannah-Jones tweeted.

“Mr. Scott responded: ‘When Black conservatives speak up and speak truth, folks like you say to shut up & sit down.’
…

“The evidence is on his side, too. Thomas Sowell points out that in 1960—almost 100 years after slavery—only 22% of African-American children grew up in homes with one parent. Thirty years later, after the expansion of the welfare state under the Great Society, that percentages had tripled.
…

“But Mr. Scott’s main point stands. Many of the Great Society programs he indicts have been doing their damage for decades. Isn’t it time we judged them on their results and not their intentions? That would be a debate worth watching.”

Read the full piece here.

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