Fed by Reform: Congressional Politics, Partisan Change, and the Food Stamp Program, 1961–1981

Despite the institutional difficulties that the food stamp program faced in Congress, however, it did in fact grow dramatically in the decade and a half following its establishment as a national program in 1964, reaching a monthly average of more than 21 million Americans by 1980. What accounted for...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of policy history 2010-10, Vol.22 (4), p.474-507
Main Author: Rosenfeld, Sam
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Advocacy
American history
Food Stamps
Legislative Bodies
Narratives
Partisanship
Political behavior
Political parties
Political science
Public Opinion
Reform
Social insurance
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Summary:Despite the institutional difficulties that the food stamp program faced in Congress, however, it did in fact grow dramatically in the decade and a half following its establishment as a national program in 1964, reaching a monthly average of more than 21 million Americans by 1980. What accounted for the program's enactment and subsequent expansion in the 1960s and 1970s? And how did institutional dynamics shape both the substance of the policy and the strategies of food stamp advocates inside and outside Congress? A twofold answer, detailed in the narrative below, corresponds to two roughly distinct periods of national public opinion and political momentum concerning the program and during both periods, institutional reforms in Congress proved crucial. Adapted from the source document.
ISSN:0898-0306
1528-4190
DOI:10.1017/S0898030610000230