# data[].attributes.body
The Great Society was a great implementation in the U.S. At the time America was in distress and in great need of a new plan for the future. When the Great Society was established it took into action some massive reforms and began very important programs. Two of the most important of the programs was Medicare and Medicaid. These programs did an excellent job of providing people with access to support systems that they normally wouldn't have. However, they also greatly increased how much citizens relied on the government. With people relying more on the government it seemed to discourage hard work and Americans lost the incentive to make America a better place to be. I agree with the author Joseph A. Califano Jr. In his article he says " the poverty line dropped 22.2 percent to 12.6 percent, the most dramatic decline over such a brief period in this century"

# data[].attributes.body
The Great Society in my eyes was a great idea for the future of America.

# data[].attributes.body
Step #1: Write an 8-11 sentence
paragraph response answering the following prompt:

Was the Great Society successful?

Use the three direct quotes from the author you agreed with most during the close reading assignment  to support your response.

Step #2: Respond to one additional post by another classmate.  Posts can range from questions, clarification, agreeing, etc.  Responses must be a minimum of 3 complete sentences.

# data[].attributes.body
I the Pro argument was more convincing due to the many advantages it brought to societies around the country. Califano Jr. used a lot more statistics and connected to programs in modern day society. For example the program Head Start "served more than 16 million preschoolers in every city and county in the nation and today serves 800,000 children a year." It helped promote the well-being of every citizen through hard times. Secondly, Califano states "today, the Great Society food stamp program helps feed more than 20 million men, women and children in more than 8 million households." This society reforms helped in every aspect of life they could, from education to food to housing and more. If someone was in need, the Great Society had reforms that could help. Lastly, the Great Society helped students by "providing more than a quarter of a trillion dollars in 86 million college loans to 29 million students." President Johnson knew the way to change the ways of society was to reach out to the young college students and he made sure to get students their education.

# data[].attributes.body
I believe that The implementation of the Great Society has impacted America and it's citizens in a positive manner. The Great Society consisted of many programs that were meant to build up America. Government funded programs such public education systems and public housing projects gave way to America's social and economic advance. The Great Society has since then provided more than "$86 million of college loans to over 29 million students." Education since then has skyrocketed and is now becoming a mandatory thing up to a high school level. Federal housing programs have provided a way for those beneath the poverty line to own a decent home in which they can raise a family and gain and education enough so to provide for that family. "Medicare and medicaid" were great programs that gave benefits to all americans that were not fortunate enough to have a steady flowing income. The Great Society was a very good program that increased  Political, Social, and Economic welfare within America.

# data[].attributes.body
The Great Society has been able to make huge steps forward since the 1960s. Joesph Califano Jr. expressed in his opinion with many facts that connected very well to the Great Society. For example the Poverty rate had made huge improvements during 1960s. "From 1963 when Lyndon Johnson took office to 1970, the portion of Americans living below the poverty line went from 22.2% to 12.6% during that time period". This was very big for the United States and for President Johnson because he was actually making an effort to work hard and change the United States for the better. Other programs such as "Head Start had served more than 16 million preschoolers in just about every city in the county across the nation and in 1999 it servers 800,000 children a year". But Johnson didn't just stop at the preschoolers and the children. He made it an effort to have the "federal government provide more than a quarter of a trillion dollars in 86 million college loans to 29 million students..." which made the education system a lot better and a lot more focused on making the next generation have all the tools they needed to keep the country moving forward. With these advancements for our society, we were able to make huge steps forward in the right direction.

# data[].attributes.body
The Great Society could be considered one of America's greatest economic achievements and one of America's worst failures. However, I believe that in a way, it was more beneficial than degenerative. Through Joseph Califano's pro argument, we learned some of the achievements of the Great Society such as "since 1965 the federal government has provided more than a quarter of a trillion dollars in 86 million college loans to 29 million students," but they also created the organization named Head Start. "Head Start has served more than 16 million preschoolers in just about every city and county in the nation" and most of these changes still benefit the American population today. On the other hand, during the Great society, Thomas Sowell points out that "rates of violent crime, including 🤬 skyrocketed" and that "the economic rise of blacks began decades earlier" which means that "the continuation of the rise of blacks out of poverty did not... accelerate during the 1960's," which the pro argument used the civil rights of african americans as a benefit yet it was proved wrong by Sowell. Overall, there were more benefits and change from the Great Society that still last today and America would not be the same without it.

# data[].attributes.body
From the increased rate of teenage pregnancy and the skyrocketed rates of venereal diseases, to the halt of black American economic rise, the Great Society ended up creating more problems than solutions. Now this is not to say that Johnson's plan was a complete failure, because is definitely had its benefits. With each benefit brought on however, there was an equal or greater consequence in return. The creation of cheap and affordable housing for all sounds great on paper, but when it comes down to it, those housing communities quickly turn into filthy, crime creating slums. From the years of 1934-1960, 🤬 and other violent crime rates had been cut in half, but with the introduction of new policies to cure the "root causes" the numbers reversed in direction and began climbing again. African Americans had finally been able to slowly crawl out of their weak levels of economic success, but the new ideas implemented set a capstone to their prosperity. It may appear that poverty rates dropped significantly for black families during the 1960's, but in reality, the rates had been dropping from the years of 1940-1960. Overall, Johnson's Great Society, while providing multiple positives, did come at the cost of some severe negative effects that changed American forever.

# data[].attributes.body
Was the Great Society successful?

I believe that the Great Society was successful. Though life prior to the 60s had been thriving already, it seems as if life during the 60s had its benefits as well. According to Joseph A. Califano Jr., claimed that the 1960s provided accessible educational aid for years to come. He mentioned that "Today nearly 60 percent of full-time undergraduate students receive federal financial aid under Great Society programs..." Califano also mentioned the benefits of Head Start, an educational factor of the Great Society. He stated "Head Start has served more than 16 million preschoolers in just about every city and county in the nation and today serves 800,000 children a year."  Non only did the Great Society vastly benefit the school system, it was a landmark for healthcare organizations. It supported medicaid and helped it grow and flourish. "Medicaid has served more than 200 million needy Americans."

# data[].attributes.body
Joseph Califano made a more convincing argument with his claim that the Great Society was a success. He used an abundance of statistics and connected the programs to how they help people today, which proved more credible than Thomas Sowell's argument. Califano claims that "if the Great Society had not achieved that dramatic reduction in poverty...and had not maintained it, 24 million more Americans would today be living below the poverty level." President Johnson's War on Poverty caused a great decrease in the suffering poor. He also states that "today, the Great Society's food stamp program helps feed more than 20 million Americans." These programs have greatly helped reduce the hunger situation even to today. Lastly, Califano connects his claim to modern day by saying "nearly 60% of full time undergraduate students receive federal financial aid under Great Society programs." With the expensive cost of education, Califano gives evidence that these programs have allowed students to continue their schooling. While Sowell makes good claims to show how it wasn't successful, Califano leads the reader to believe that the Great Society had and continues to help people through poverty, education, and healthcare.

# data[].attributes.body
The Great Society programs of the 1960s had a large impact on various American lives. When Lyndon Johnson took office and implemented his Great Society programs "the poverty line dropped from 22.2 percent to 12.6 percent, the most dramatic decline over such a brief period in this century." This major decrease in poverty was a result of the federal government stepping in and providing economic aid to schools, students, and the poor. The government "provided more than a quarter of a trillion dollars in 86 million college loans to 29 million students" to make sure the upcoming generation could afford proper education. Thanks to Great Society programs, "nearly 60 percent of full-time undergraduate student receive federal financial aid." Since 1966, a Great Society program called Medicaid has supported "over 200 million needy Americans." Without financial aid programs like Medicaid, millions of more Americans would be living under the poverty line. Not only did the Great Society programs help the poor, but they also "opened the way for black Americans to strengthen their voice at every level of government." The "Voting Rights Act of 1965" allowed for black Americans “to strengthen their voice at every level of government” and helped increase the amount of black elected officials in the nation.

# data[].attributes.body
The author that I agree with the most is Joseph A. Califano Jr. I chose to agree with him because his vocabulary made the prompt more convincing. Also, he gave many statistics which has me convinced as a reader. Knowing that "the Great Society's food stamp program helps feed more than 20 million men, women, and children in more that 8 million households." and how "The Voting Rights Act of 1965 ... opened the way for black Americans to strengthen their voice at every level of government." really convinces me that the Great Society was beneficial. Not only were these people helped out, but all of America was benefitted I learned by reading this article. "Since 1965 the federal government has provided more than a quarter trillion dollars in 86 million college loans to 29 million students and more than $14 billion in work-study awards to 6 million students". This shows that government loans are being changed additionally. America changed a lot with the idea of the Great Society in mind. I chose to write about the Pro List because Califano Jr. 's writing is a lot more convincing, and all of the statistics show how America was benefitted. He has a positive outlook on everything and has strong vocabulary. the statistics over the readers an idea of how this program shaped America. also, strong vocabulary makes the reading a lot more interesting. At some points of the passage, he even questions the readers, and that really makes the readers think.

# data[].attributes.body
I think the Great Society was successful because I think it solved more problems than it created. I think there is no way to have a perfect society and a perfect working system. Yes violence and 🤬 is bad but I feel like teenage pregnancy and the increased slums are just minor issues that can be fixed. The Great Society helped the poverty leave the circle, " Americans living below the poverty line dropped from 22.2 percent to 12.6 percent." Also, to have a successful country you have to educate the generations to come and to help with kids," Since 1965 the federal government has provided more than a quarter of a trillion dollars and 86 million college loans to 25 million students." Since the students in college will be the next generation I think it was important to improve there education. Finally, it reduced racial injustice, which was a big step for America. " In 1998, there were some 9000 elected black officials across the nation, 6000 in the South" That is surprising because the African Americans were discriminated the most in the South but more than half of the officials were from the south.

# data[].attributes.body
Although the Great Society came with a few issues overall it was successful and legally helped promote equality among all. Many conservatives viewed the program of the new 1960s as a "misguided and failed social experiment that wasted taxpayers' money.

# data[].attributes.body
I think CAlifano was more convincing because he had more legible statistics than Sowell who is allegedly stating facts with little justification. Califano was able to provide adequate proof for the viewer to read. For example, Califano states that from 1963 when Johnson was president, until 1970, "a portion of the Americans living below the poverty line dropped from 22.2% to 12.6%, the most dramatic decline over such a brief period of time." Whereas Sowell proposes, "The continuation of blacks out of poverty did not-- repeat, did not-- accelerate during the 1960s." Where is the evidence that the rates of blacks out of poverty did not accelerate? Sowell only presents the statistics of poverty rates from 1940 to 1960 (87%-40%)  which was the most recent and dramatic reduction in poverty before the Great Society. I believe the Great Society was a success because there are now lower poverty rates and blacks now were given a voice in government, where Califano shows, "by 1998, there were 9,000 elected black officials." This creates a lot of doors for the working class people to open into different regions of their careers. Sowell cpuld not provide specific evidence that cpuld lead me to believe that the Great Society was a social faliure.

# data[].attributes.body
I think the best argument was brought up by Thomas Sowell. I think he has the best article and argument do to all the facts that he had and how they made it seem like the great society did nothing but make things worse. Like when he says "Rates of violent crime,including 🤬,skyrocketed" this quote shows that the great society caused increase in the worst kind of crimes there are. Then he talks about how the housing programs just ended up becoming slums "but brand new government housing projects almost immediately became new centers of crime and quickly degenerated into new slums" to me this shows a huge failure in the plans of the great society because they just created more of a problem then before by doing this. Then he talks about how African Americans did not increase out of poverty during this time. "The continuation of the rise of blacks out of poverty did not repeat, did not accelerate during the 1960s" . I feel like because of this it shows that the great society failed in many of there promises.

# data[].attributes.body
1) I believe that the Great Society was very successful in a way that brought the reality that comes with equality. In Joseph Califano's response, he stated that "If the Great Society had not achieved that dramatic reduction in society,- 24 million Americans would today be living below the poverty level." This proves to show that all the aid given to the people, did help them retain all the necessities they needed in order to make it through life. The con argument stated a lot of negatives that came with the Great society, for instance a raise in teen pregnancies, sexually transmitted diseases, a "freepass" for the poor, and that African Americans had been stuck in poverty due to not being slaves anymore. I think that all of these acts resulting in the Great Society had to have happen in order to create a society of equality. Although African Americans were in poverty, the "Voting Rights Act of 1965 opened the way for black Americans to strengthen their voice at every level of government", therefore giving serving them a bit more justice in the country. The Great Society also is a part of "Head Start- serv[ing] more than 16 million preschoolers" allowing kindergartens and nursery school benefits available to the poor, creating a better educated society.

# data[].attributes.body
The Great Society programs of the 1960s helped many Americans in all aspects of life. Califano's article "What was Really Great About the Great Society" argues that the programs implemented under Johnson's presidency helped all Americans, especially the poor. With Johnson's guidance, "the portion of Americans living below the poverty line dropped from 22.2 percent to 12.6 percent." This was the biggest decrease in poverty rates in the 20th century. Not only did the programs help with poverty, they also "opened the way for black Americans to strengthen their voice at every level of government" with "The Voting Rights Act of 1965." The civil rights agenda helped African Americans become more involved with politics and policies passed. Lastly, the national health care programs, such as Medicare and Medicaid, "served more than 200 million needy Americans" during 1966, and the number has steadily decreased throughout the 20th century. This proves that the programs implemented in the 1960s helped decrease poverty rates all the way through the 20th century.

# data[].attributes.body
Overall, the Great Society was successful and helped promote the well-being of American citizens. President Johnson created the Great Society to accomplish his goal of putting an end to poverty and racial injustice. When Johnson implemented programs to work toward accomplishing these goals, "the portion of Americans living below the poverty line dropped from 22.2 percent to 12.6 percent." This large decrease in the number of Americans living in poverty was a result of the various programs created by the federal government. The Great Society also implemented various programs that continue to make an impact in society. In 1999, "nearly 60 percent of full-time undergraduate students receive federal financial aid under Great Society programs." This shows that the Great Society was not only successful when it was first created, but it also continued to have a positive impact on society. Some of the Great Society's programs created new opportunities for people, for instance, "the Voting Rights Act of 1965... opened the way for Black Americans to strengthen their voice at every level of government." The Great Society was able to make advances toward the goal of ending racial injustice. Overall, the Great Society was able to make a positive impact on society when it was first created and continues to promote society.

# data[].attributes.body
I believe that the Great Society was successful. I also believed that it did help America in the long run. Joseph A. Califano Jr, was also for the Great Society. He gave some great statistics to help prove his point on why the Great Society was so successful. "Poverty dropped form 22.2% to 12.6%." "If the Great Society had not achieved the dramatic reduction in poverty, and had not maintained it, then 24 million more Americans would be today be living under the poverty level." "Head start served more than 16 million preschoolers in just about every city and country in the nation." Therefore, I believe the Great Society helped build our nation up, and it is a big part on how we got here today.

# data[].attributes.body
I believe that the Great Society did benefit a lot of American because it helped "the portions of Americans living below the poverty line" along with an abundance of people. The Great Society not only helped people but the environment and businesses. It put a ban on the amount of pollution factories were allowed to get rid of. It helped children by creating Head Start which has "served more than 16 million preschoolers in just about every city and county in the nation". Johnson believed that creating an environment for children to learn and grow, they will do amazing things in their future. The Great Society was helpful to people needing medical care like how "79 million Americans have signed up for Medicare" in order to get access to health care. Which then allowed people over 65 to be able to sign up for Medicaid. Overall the Great Society was not perfect but it did help millions of Americans get basic care.

# data[].attributes.body
In my opinion the Great Society helped out many Americans. "The portion of Americans living below the poverty level line dropped from 22.2% to 12.6%. Also during the Great Society African Americans had more of a voice , because "the voting act, open the way for African Americans. Another thing it had provided is "Medicaid which has served more than 200 million needy americans.

# data[].attributes.body
The programs of the Great Society had many different outcomes, but it had more successful outcomes than failing outcomes. I agree with Califano about the how the Great Society was a success and not a waste of money because of how it created opportunities for everyone in society and made everyone equal. One success of the Great Society was education. Califano states, "Since 1965 the federal government has provided more than a quarter of a trillion dollars in 86 million college loans to 29 million students, and more than $14 billion in work-study awards to 6 million students." This shows how the government helped college students have an education and helped pay off their student debt. The same thing happened to all other grades of education, the government wanted everyone to at least have an education. Another Success is health programs. Califano states that,  "Since 1965, 79 million Americans have signed up for Medicare...Since 1966, Medicaid has served more than 200 million needy Americans." This shows that the Great Society wants everyone to have life and health insurances to help Americans with paying the bills and expenses of hospitals. The Great Society also created the Food stamp program to help people that could not buy food for their family. The final success of the Great Society was racial equality. Califano states that, "The Voting Rights Act of 1965... opened the way for black Americans to strengthen their voice at every level of government. In 1964 there were 79 black elected officials in the South and 300 in the entire nation." This shows that African Americans could now not be discriminated by their color or race  and can be treated equally. All of these successes continued through out the rest of the 1960s to present day because of how important these programs are for

# data[].attributes.body
The Great Society in my opinion has developed into a controversial subject after the production of the 60s. Califano brings up the positive outcomes of this program. In 1999, the lasting effects of funding for education "Today nearly 60 percent of full time graduates receive federal financial aid under the Great Society programs" has infiltrated the system in which education was lacking, this change was needed and was greatly used. The Society was successful because of the breakthrough it made " By 1998, there were some 9,000 elected black officials across the nation" racism in the office would still be extremely prevalent is the program had never been welcomed into the system. Califano brings up the point of "Is revolution too strong of a word?" this is exactly how the people viewed it because these programs provided such an impact. The Great Society was absolutely great, revealing how much change was needed after the 50s. The way people reacted during war time tore America apart and by giving these people a new reality it changes the attitude with every positive outcome. Every program that was created seemed to be one step closer to the greater future.

# data[].attributes.body
Personally, I do not believe the Great Society to have been successful. For example, as Thomas Sowell stated in his passage, "The rise of blacks in professional and other high-level occupations was greater in the five years preceding the Civil Rights Act of 1964 than in five years afterwards." This quote leads the audience to believe that life was more successful before the Great Society was introduced. Thomas Sowell did a phenomenal job at including direct facts as to why the Great Society may not have been as successful as people had hoped. Another argument Sowell brought up was the 🤬 rate, "The 🤬 rate had been going down, for decades, and in 1960 was just under half of what it had been in 1934." This quote suggesting, again, that the Great Society did little to help U.S., but did a lot to hurt it. Lastly, Sowell stated that "Rates of teenage pregnancy and venereal disease had been going down for years before the new 1960s attitudes toward sex spread rapidly through the schools, helped by War on Poverty money." With all of that being said, it is clear to see that The Great Society did very little to help the nation, in fact, this process potentially just made things worse.

# data[].attributes.body
The Great Society was not successful. "... and of government programs as the solution to social problems." I agree with not the governments job to fix our problems. Let alone try to fix problems that were already resolving themselves in the previous years. For example, "The 🤬 rate had also been going down, for decades, and in 1960 was just under half of what it had been in 1934." Then the new 1960s policies were put in place that would protect the rights of criminals, which lead to a skyrocket in violent crimes, even 🤬. Also, the new government housing just became new grounds for crime activity. In the excerpt it stated that, "... government housing projects almost immediately became new centers of crime and quickly degenerated into new slums." Finally, the new programs weren't the cause of the economic rise of the blacks their economy started to rise decades earlier. The excerpt stated that, "The economic rise of blacks began decades earlier, before any of the legislation and policies that are credited with producing that rise."

# data[].attributes.body
The Great Society was able to help many families, minorities, and many other kinds of Americans through the course of the 1960's. Programs were created to help college students pay for their education and also cutting poverty rates in half. I do not agree with the fact that people are able to rely on the government to live their life, but I think that this movement started by President Johnson was successful. When Califano Jr. stated that, "Head Start has served more than 16 million preschoolers in just about every city in the country" I was surprised. Helping families in poverty give their children a good foundation to their education is very important because it is shaping their future. America also made large strides in discrimination when, "the Voting Rights Act of 1965" was passed because it, "opened the way for black Americans to strengthen their voice at every level of government." This was an important movement in the 60's that helped bring tensions down in the future. Also, "since 1965, 79 million Americans have signed up for medicare" and this might be one of the most important gain out of the entire great society. People who were not already able to afford healthcare were now able to go see a doctor when they became sick. The Great Society was a very important movement in American history and was very successful.

# data[].attributes.body
Personally, I do believe that the Great Society was successful. For example, it helped a lot of people escape poverty. "The portion of Americans living below the poverty line dropped from 22.2 percent to 12.6 percent."  Another claim that the author stated was that "more than $14 billion in work-study awards to 6 million students. This shows how the Great Society helped not just people in poverty, but students in college as well. This helped many students get the funds/loans they needed to get an education and get through college. The Great Society also helped many schoolchildren, for example, Head Start as helped about 16 million preschoolers throughout every nation around the world. People today are still being helped by Great Society programs and that's why I agree with Joseph A. Califano Jr. on the fact that The Great Society was successful.

# data[].attributes.body
Based off of the articles provided I believe the Great society was successful. Joseph A. Califano Jr. made a persuasive argument that the Great Society had a great impact on the United States during the 60's. He support his claims by stating facts such as, "The poverty line dropped 22.2 percent to 12.6 percent, the most dramatic decline over such a brief period in this century".  There were also many programs put into place to help the poor overcome the poverty cycle. One of these programs was Head Start which, "has served more than 16 million preschoolers in just about every city and county in the nation". Head Start wasn't the only program to help education improve. "The federal government has provided more than a quarter trillion dollars in 86 million college loans to 29 million students" . This was also apart of The Great Society as a plan to help those in poverty overcome the cycle and get a headstart in life. Overall The Great Society benefitted the American people financiall and in education.

# data[].attributes.headline
The Great Society was successful because it was able to help out those living in poverty throughout the 1960's. I agree with Califano's article and how the Great Society created programs to help people in America like Medicare and Head Start. It also dropped the poverty line from 22.2 percent to 12.6 percent, the most dramatic decline over such a brief period in this century. The government had also provided more than a trillion dollars in 86 million college loans to 29 million students. Also a program called Medicare has served more than 200 million needy Americans. Joseph Califano also says that to this day, the Great Society's food stamp program helps feed more than 20 million men, women, and children in more than 8 million households. Black Americans voice's were strengthened thanks to the Voting Rights Act of 1965 which lead to 9,000 elected black officials across the nation. 

# data[].attributes.subject
The Great Society was successful because it was able to help out those living in poverty throughout the 1960's. I agree with Califano's article and how the Great Society created programs to help people in America like Medicare and Head Start. It also dropped the poverty line from 22.2 percent to 12.6 percent, the most dramatic decline over such a brief period in this century. The government had also provided more than a trillion dollars in 86 million college loans to 29 million students. Also a program called Medicare has served more than 200 million needy Americans. Joseph Califano also says that to this day, the Great Society's food stamp program helps feed more than 20 million men, women, and children in more than 8 million households. Black Americans voice's were strengthened thanks to the Voting Rights Act of 1965 which lead to 9,000 elected black officials across the nation. 

# data[].attributes.body
In my opinion,Thomas Sowell wrote a more compelling argument and brings up many facts and statistics to back up his claims. For example, Sowell states that "rates of teenage pregnancy and venereal disease has been going down for years before the new 1960's attitude towards sex spread rapidly through the schools... These downward trends suddenly reversed and skyrocketed." This shows that before the war on poverty had even began, the teenage pregnancy rate was decreasing steadily, and in fact, the Great Society stopped this trend and sent it flying in the other direction. Another piece of evidence used my Sowell was that "the 🤬 rate had also been going down, for decades, and in 1960 was just under half of what it had been in 1934. Then the new 1960's policies toward curing the 'root causes' of crime and creating new 'rights' for criminals began. Rates of violent crime, including 🤬. skyrocketed." He once again provides clear evidence that the war on poverty did not decrease rates of violent crime, and in fact, skyrocketed this statistic. Furthermore, the War on Poverty failed once again where it mattered most, poverty rates. As stated by Sowell, "The poverty rate among black families fell from 87 percent in 1940 to 47 percent in 1960, during an era of virtually no major civil rights legislation or anti-poverty programs... the rise of blacks in professional and other high-level occupations was greater in the five years preceding the civil Rights act of 1964 than the five years afterwards." Considering he War on Poverty could not even accomplish the goal stated in its very name, and fell short in almost every other aspect it attempted to improve,  unfortunately, it is hard to say that Lyndon Johnson's efforts were a success

# data[].attributes.body
In my opinion the Great Society was a very influential and important time. We can see it was successful through Joseph A. Califanos article, "What Was Really Great about the Great Society." He states that "the portion of Americans living below the poverty line dropped from 22.2 percent to 12.6 percent" and has stayed that low for a very long time. He argues that this action has changed the amount of people in poverty for good. He also argues and backs the benefits of medicare and medicaid. As said in his article, "since 1965, 79 million Americans signed up for medicare," and in the first year "1966, 19 million Americans were enrolled." He backs his argument and shows the audience the major change that it had on society providing help to many people. One of his final keypoints and biggest argument he focuses on is racial equality. He states that "The voting Act of 1965... opened the way for black Americans to strengthen their voice in government." It also gave them a bigger voice in life in general.