MAV, it's not clear what you mean by the "War on Poverty," as that was a term used during Johnson's administration during the 60s; due to the Vietnam War's demands, the "War on Poverty" was actually never fully funded at the time, and the drive to address hunger, substandard housing, and inadequate healthcare stalled.

However, some funding existed, though it was slowly whittled away during the 70s. When Reagan was elected in the early 80s, funding for most social services plummeted. It is one of the reasons that homelessness rose to the fore as a significant issue in the US, as there was no (or very little) money put into building low-income houseing or providing for subsidized housing. Employment assistance (especially for poor youth, rural and inner city) was also dramatically reduced. Social services today consist of a very thin welfare system, designed to push people into low-income jobs, some food stamp availability, and, depending on the state, some healthcare assistance.

I've never really understood the reasoning behind denial of the need for social services, perhaps because I've needed and used them from time to time myself, but also because I've worked in some form of social service for many years, including working in homeless shelters, tutorial and literacy programs, substance abuse treatment, short-term psychiatric care. The truth is, many people need some form of help, whether that is through support for pre-natal care, housing, food, education, healthcare--not everybody can or will fend for themselves, for various reasons. It just seems extremely cruel to either blame people who are struggling with these problems, incarcerate them, or simply pretend they don't exist.

MAV, you mention $5 trillion dollars. Again, you don't say where this number comes from, but exactly what price can be put on the value of educating or feeding a community? What is the price of one Stealth bomber? There is an obscene imbalance of wealth in this country and it appears that Conservatives, in general, believe that's some sort of divine balance. It's interesting to note which side of the financial divide most of the conservative politicians fall on. Laws are never separate from the perspectives and interests of the human beings that write them.