The GOP's debt-ceiling plan threatens to take the most from those who have the least

A conversation with poverty expert Matthew Desmond about Republicans' plan to slash funding for programs that help poor people

While Jim puts the finishing touches on his book, we wanted to share this recent conversation he had with Princeton University sociologist Matthew Desmond.

Desmond is the author of four books, including “Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City,” which won the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Critics Circle Award. His new book is called “Poverty, By America,” and it’s a New York Times bestseller. The book explores why the United States, the richest country on earth, has more poverty than any other advanced democracy.

Desmond argues that we are all implicated in perpetuating unjust economic systems and provides practical ways each of us can become “poverty abolitionists.”

Jim’s hosted Desmond on Wednesday’s episode of Soul of the Nation. Their conversation begins with House Republicans’ threat to crash our economy by defaulting on the national debt if the federal government doesn’t drastically slash social services. Desmond calls the plan “shameful and sinful.”

"This is about taking away programs from people who desperately rely on them to eat, avoid homelessness, and give their kids a little breath," he said.

Desmond is not alone raising alarms about the GOP’s immoral proposal.

As the Center on Budget & Policy Priorities has written:

“House Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s debt-limit-and-cuts bill puts the U.S. economy at grave risk by using the need to raise the debt ceiling as a bargaining chip to force a set of unpopular, harmful policies — policies that would make deep cuts in a host of national priorities; leave more people hungry, homeless, and without health coverage; and make it easier for wealthy people to cheat on their taxes. The bill would also repeal the Inflation Reduction Act’s funding to address climate change, and would undertake harmful changes that would undermine how regulations are crafted.”

We hope you will take the time to listen to Jim’s conversation with Matthew Desmond. It’s a good one. And please share your comments and rate Soul of the Nation on your podcasting platforms. We appreciate it.