[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 160 (2014), Part 1]
[House]
[Page 449]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                                POVERTY

  (Mr. PITTS asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. PITTS. Mr. Speaker, it has been more than 50 years since 
President Johnson declared war on poverty. I don't doubt that President 
Johnson had good intentions, but intentions don't win wars, and poverty 
is a stubborn opponent. Fifteen percent of Americans still live below 
the poverty line, after trillions spent by the government.
  In December, I brought together community leaders and national 
experts to discuss how we can reinvigorate the city of Reading and 
other cities in the 16th District of Pennsylvania. From this 
conference, we are moving forward to get institutions to work together 
strategically and think differently about attacking the problem.
  Government at every level and communities' leaders need to cooperate 
and make sure there are opportunities to start new businesses and 
attract more development.
  Perhaps most importantly, we need smart strategies to help kids get a 
good education. This has to include building strong families, since 
statistics show that children raised by only one parent are far more 
susceptible to temptations of drugs and gangs and other problems.
  It is time we rethought our strategy and rededicate ourselves to try 
helping needy Americans by removing barriers for wealth creation.

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