In his latest remarks on poverty in America, Republican Rep. Paul Ryan accused residents of “inner cities” of having a “real culture problem” and lack of work ethic during an appearance on Bill Bennett’s Morning in America radio show Wednesday.
The House Budget Committee Chairman indicated his new policy proposals will include work requirements, saying he plans to “re-emphasize work and reform our welfare programs” as he repeatedly referenced former Pres. Bill Clinton’s 1996 welfare reform efforts.
“We have got this tailspin of culture, in our inner cities in particular, of men not working and just generations of men not even thinking about working or learning to value the culture of work, so there is a real culture problem here that has to be dealt with,” Ryan said.
Ryan, who has become a prominent voice in the Republican party discussing poverty, said many Americans are “slipping through the cracks” and that Republicans and conservatives should have “something to say about it.”
Bennett responded by describing a “fatherless problem” in impoverished communities. Ryan, whose widowed mother raised him alone in his late teens, did not disagree with Bennett’s assessment, but noted that his mother was a strong influence in developing his work ethic, saying she often used the phrases “suck it up, deal with it, and tough” with him.








