Abstract

President Richard Nixon’s 1969 welfare reform proposal, the Family Assistance Plan (FAP), debuted to rave reviews from conservatives (who appreciated its work requirement) and liberals (who lauded its minimum income). The two-thirds of Americans who approved of FAP included many Catholics and their bishops. However, Nixon ran out of enthusiasm, and Congress ran out of time. By 1972, the bishops had turned left, insisting on a higher income floor and a work incentive rather than a mandate, whereas many of their congregants had turned right. Nixon stopped courting the bishops and started wooing their flock, helping to ensure his re-election victory and FAP’s legislative defeat.

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