When I read this article I was surprised and looked for some data, and while the fact that California is the leader in this poverty metric is true, the claims o

When I read this article I was surprised and looked for some data, and while the fact that California is the leader in this poverty metric is true, the claims of why I'm not entirely sold on. 1) The state with the 2nd highest adjusted poverty rate, Florida, has had republican governors since 1999, republicans in both chambers of the legislature and is not a "welfare state". 2) California "welfare" spending per-capita has been dropping for the past 5 years, not rising at some out of control rate [1] 3) The adjustment in poverty rate causing CA to shoot to the top is almost certainly due to high housing costs, which is serious problem but not tied to the welfare state [2] So while I think it is a useful wake up call that California isn't a perfect place where everybody is doing well, blaming the welfare state is probably not very accurate, and more sane housing policies would probably do far more to help the poverty rates than curtailing support programs. And another thing to note, the rate has been dropping. In 2013 it was 23.4, and now it is 20.4, which I'm sure is mostly due to the economy being much stronger, but at the same time shows this isn't a problem spiraling out of control. 1: https://www.usgovernmentspending.com/spending_chart_2006_2022CAb_19c1li211mcn_40c https://www.usgovernmentspending.com/spending_chart_2006_202... 2: http://www.politifact.com/california/statements/2017/jan/20/chad-mayes/true-california-has-nations-highest-poverty-rate-w/ http://www.politifact.com/california/statements/2017/jan/20/...