Mission Accomplished: 1 in 2 Americans are now poor or low income

WASHINGTON - Squeezed by rising living costs, a record number of
Americans ? nearly 1 in 2 ? have fallen into poverty or are scraping
by on earnings that classify them as low income.

The latest census data depict a middle class that's shrinking as
unemployment stays high and the government's safety net frays. The new
numbers follow years of stagnating wages for the middle class that
have hurt millions of workers and families.

"Safety net programs such as food stamps and tax credits kept poverty
from rising even higher in 2010, but for many low-income families with
work-related and medical expenses, they are considered too 'rich' to
qualify," said Sheldon Danziger, a University of Michigan public
policy professor who specializes in poverty.

"The reality is that prospects for the poor and the near poor are
dismal," he said. "If Congress and the states make further cuts, we
can expect the number of poor and low-income families to rise for the
next several years."

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