When one thinks of America’s war in the 1960s during the administration of President Lyndon Johnson, the Vietnam War comes to mind. The American government spent about $175 billion and the lives of about 58,000 men in a futile attempt to stop the communist takeover of South Vietnam. But as costly as this war was, it pales in comparison with the other war President Johnson, and all subsequent presidents have fought in vain—the “war on poverty.” In an address to Congress in January 1964, President Johnson declared an “unconditional war on poverty.” The effort has been almost entirely futile and has cost the American taxpayers more than $30 trillion. This is more than three times the cost of all military wars from the American Revolution to the War on Terror.

Poverty in the United States was a significant problem at the end of World War II. After a persistent economic depression, made worse by economically unwise policies of presidents Hoover and Roosevelt, and rationing during the war, more than one in three Americans lived below the official poverty line. By 1964, however, this number had already fallen by almost half.  What caused the sharp fall in poverty? In a word, growth. During that period, the US economy tripled in size. The rising tide lifted (more or less) all boats.

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