Blue Mass Group

Reality-based commentary on politics.

What Do the Candidates Think About the Claw Back?

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Stories about the Baker Administration going after $2.7 billion in unemployment benefits have started showing up in the media. Here’s John Carroll’s take https://campaignoutsider.com/2022/01/18/massachusetts-to-unemployment-recipients-pay-it-backward/#comments
This is something that candidates, especially for Governor, should address. It doesn’t take much political courage to promise to “keep doing the things that work and fix the things that don’t.” as one candidate recently promised.
It’s a real issue and not an easy one. Keep clawing back? Slow it down? Or stop it entirely.
My own bias is toward stopping it entirely. The unemployment benefits were a necessary boon for the economy. They helped the Commonwealth get through the first part of the pandemic with a lot less hardship. And since probably more middleclass and working people got the benefits, they probably had a positive effect on income inequality. The claw back could undo all the good that the unemployment benefits did. Except for cases of blatant fraud, the state should just stop clawing this money back.
But more importantly, this is an opportunity for leadership. What do the candidates intend to do if they are elected?

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Comments

  1. Well, I’m not a candidate, but I think this is a no-brainer. These benefits were not loans, nor were they fraudulently obtained. The state should swallow the loss and the people should keep their money.

  2. Last time I was on unemployment, I learned how to maximize my financial return by working just the right amount of part time hours. It was a system that enabled me to stretch my benefit a couple extra months. No, I did not get more money, just more opportunity to work part-time instead of full time. As soon as the money ran out, I went full time. Yes, there were a few people who looked down on me for this, but screw them. We live in a America where our 4th president bragged about evading taxes because he was “smart”. We live in an America where tax loopholes for the very wealthy are big enough to sail an 80 meter yacht through. But when working class citizens try to grab a few crumbs from this cookie jar, well, that’s just not right! Let them keep the money.

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