Silke Jasso
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is signaling more reforms are ahead for the nation’s welfare system. He tells conservatives that “it’s time for all Americans to get off welfare and get back to work.” He adds, “You’re going to love it.”
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The nation’s welfare laws were overhauled under former President Bill Clinton in the 1990s. The changes provided states with grants in exchange for greater flexibility in how they can use the funds.
There’s been a steady decline in the number of needy families participating in the nation’s welfare program since the mid-1990s.
Trump says at the Conservative Political Action Conference that “jobs are already starting to pour back” and points to pledges for more manufacturing jobs in states like Ohio, Michigan and Pennsylvania.
Also, Trump is pledging that “in a matter of days,” his administration will take “a brand new action” to prevent potential terrorists from entering the U.S.
But only hours earlier Trump suggested the opposite, saying it would be a “military operation.”
Trump continued to complain about the media’s use of anonymous sources and accusing news news outlets of making up source for damaging reports about his White House.
Trump spoke just hours after members of his own staff held a press briefing in which they refused to attach their names to the information.
Trump is speaking at the nation’s largest gathering of conservative activists.
He escalated his attacks on what he calls the “fake news.” He says fake reporting is the “enemy of the people.”
Earlier Friday, Trump blamed the FBI for failing to stop leaks to the media, saying the information being reported is classified and could have a “devastating effect” on the country.
Trump made the remarks in a tweet early Friday. His tweet follows reports that White House chief of staff Reince Priebus had asked a top FBI official to dispute media reports that Trump’s campaign advisers were frequently in touch with Russian intelligence agents during the election.
Trump writes, “The FBI is totally unable to stop the national security ‘leakers’ that have permeated our government for a long time. They can’t even find the leakers within the FBI itself.”
