Welfare reform has played a prominent role in recent presidential and congressional elections. For conservatives and liberals, welfare is a fundamental issue, representative of either all that is wrong with the American welfare state or one of the fundamental responsibilities of government. Welfare policy is intertwined with many pressing public issues, ranging from poverty, racism, and urban decline to the status of women, children, and the family. In Politics and Public Morality, Gary Bryner answers the debate over whether welfare reform can succeed.