President Donald Trump speaks during a cabinet meeting at the White House on Monday. | Evan Vucci/AP Trump: I'm looking 'very strongly' at reforming welfare system

President Donald Trump is “looking very, very strongly” at reforming the nation’s welfare system, he told reporters Monday.

“One thing we’re going to be looking at very strongly is welfare reform. That’s becoming a very, very big subject,” the president said during a Cabinet meeting at the White House. “And people are taking advantage of the system, and then other people aren’t receiving what they really need to live, and we think it’s very unfair to them.”


“But some people are really taking advantage of our system from that standpoint, and we are going to be looking very, very strongly, therefore, at welfare reform,” he continued. “It’s gonna be a very big topic under this administration. And it’s started already, and we have a lot of recommendations that we’re going to be making, and you’ll be hearing about them very shortly.”

POLITICO reported earlier this month that Trump administration officials are considering an executive order instructing federal agencies to review low-income assistance programs in an effort to make sweeping changes to America’s welfare system.

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The White House began circulating a draft order in late September. The draft calls on agencies to review regulations and propose new rules that conform to a broad set of principles, streamline or eliminate duplicative services, set metrics to measure accountability and create greater cooperation with state and local governments.

Trump’s proposed fiscal 2018 budget called for a massive reduction in funding for social safety nets, such as food stamps, Social Security disability insurance benefits, and the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program.

