Should the US have any federal social safety net?

[Dazey]

Should a social safety net of any form, size or type exist at the federal level?

[TNF]

Medical care (all kinds + medication and/or any medical devices), housing (high quality and communal in nature), education (from pre-K to graduate school), pensions (at age 55), high-quality health food and access to recreational and exercise facilities should all be provided at no cost for the workers (pay for it by socializing industry and investing the returns into the social safety net and or expropriating the assets of the wealthy) by the state.

[Atlas Has Shrugged]

Of course, to a limited degree. The neediest Americans should have medical care, and some form of housing at least.

[RFayette]

Yes, though I favor devolution to the states for nearly every program in which it is feasible. 

[Türkisblau]

Yes, though I favor devolution to the states for nearly every program in which it is feasible. 

muh state's rights

Sorry poor children in Mississippi, no dinner for you

[Zioneer]

Yes, I think we should massive expand portions of the safety net.

[Samantha]

Yes—with heavy empahsis on the "federal" part so that it can not be easily dismantled by conservative state legislators acting in the interest of private industry. Nationalization of the health care industry and a guaranteed minimum income would be a good start.

[Sumner 1868]

Yes (D), with totheleft's view not far off from my own.

[TNF]

Yes, though I favor devolution to the states for nearly every program in which it is feasible. 

i.e. you favor rich states being able to have limited welfare programs with strict eligibility and poor states dismantling the public education system entirely and letting kids work at Walmart

[🦀🎂🦀🎂]

Ultimately I favour an international safety net, so no feckless government can escape the option of neglecting its vulnerable.

[RFayette]

Yes, though I favor devolution to the states for nearly every program in which it is feasible. 

muh state's rights

Sorry poor children in Mississippi, no dinner for you

I still favor federal funding for Medicaid and infant/child food assistance.  I do feel though that for most things, I would rather the money be given to the states in the form of a mix of categorical and block grants, which they can administer as they want, within certain parameters.  That mix is affected by the performance/efficacy of those states' programs in question.

[TNF]

Ultimately I favour an international safety net, so no feckless government can escape the option of neglecting its vulnerable.

Yes, we all want things that are impossible.

A century and a half ago the idea of a social safety net was derided as impossible, and yet it exists in the here and now. Just because something doesn't look likely in the next five or ten years doesn't make it impossible.

[🦀🎂🦀🎂]

I'm sorry, I didn't know I was expected to submit a White Paper on my complete plan to instituting a basic comphensive worldwide safety net.

Basically, globalisation is a reality. We already negotiate with other counties to remove tariffs and introduce free trade. seeing as the old age of tariffs, absurd subsidies and protectionism is dead or dying, why not negotiate to introduce a minimum standard of welfare to escape an economic race to the bottom. I don't think it is too unrealistic to imagine certain supranational organisations (like the EU) starting to consolidate their welfare systems in order to harmonise buerocrasies.

[🦀🎂🦀🎂]

Baby steps, PPP. baby steps.

[Oldiesfreak1854]

Yes (sane, not a libertarian/Tea Partier).

[Goldwater]

Yes, albeit a limited one.

[TDAS04]

Absolutely.