Marco Rubio pushes plan to tackle poverty
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Jan. 8, 2014: Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., speaks about the American dream on the 50th anniversary of President Lyndon Johnson's first State of the Union address in 1964, where LBJ committed the government to a war on poverty. (AP)
Sen. Marco Rubio says the nation needs a new reform agenda to help the poorest Americans find work and help their families climb out of poverty.
The Florida Republican says in a speech Wednesday that money from the federal government to address poverty should be shifted to the states and Congress should reform the tax code to give people in low-wage jobs an incentive to stay in the workforce and not collect unemployment insurance.
The potential 2016 presidential candidate says a "big government approach" launched by President Lyndon B. Johnson's "War on Poverty" 50 years ago has failed to help enough Americans trapped by poverty.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Rubio says raising the minimum wage to $10 an hour may be popular with many Americans but that it won't help people emerge from poverty.