Saturday, February 13, 2010

Pro-family = Anti-poverty: Colorado State Rep.

People who don't want to live in poverty should stop having children when they're not married, Rep. Spencer Swalm, R-Centennial, argued Monday during a floor debate on a bill to ease tax burdens on low-income families.

-- From "Anti-poverty remark stirs Colorado Dems' anger" by Jessica Fender, The Denver Post 2/11/10

"Don't have kids out of wedlock," said Swalm from the House floor. "If you're married, if at all possible, try to stay married. Those are ways to lift families out of poverty."

In an interview afterward, Swalm pointed out that "intact families do better than dysfunctional or broken families" but said he was not advocating people stay in abusive marriages.

"Those children are almost guaranteed to be in poverty. You don't want kids in poverty? Don't have kids out of wedlock," Swalm said. "Better yet, get a high school degree. That doesn't cost a dime."

. . . out of all children living in single-parent homes, more than a third lived in poverty. Only 8.6 percent of children in married-couple families lived in poverty, according to the survey.

To read the entire article, CLICK HERE.