The new frontiers of welfare reform under the Presidency of Barack Obama

In Western Europe, political commentators have been surprised by the apparent inability of President Barack Obama - at least during his first term - to implement comprehensive social policy reform, with the exception of health care legislation.
This article assesses the extent to which the Obama administration is likely to push through a more progressive social policy agenda during its second term, even though it faces considerable political institutional constraints in doing so. In particular, House Republicans have framed the public debate in terms of cuts to social programs as part of an attempt to solve the problem of the budgetary deficit.
Based on the analysis of legislative documents and current reauthorization debates as well as on a series of interviews with key policy makers, this contribution presents provisional research findings concerning the politics of two income maintenance programs, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as Food Stamps.
This article is divided into four sections. First, it briefly retraces the history and structure of TANF and Food Stamps in the broader context of a complex and extremely fragmented social protection system. Second, it shows that the Obama administration chose to build upon existing social programs through the American Recovery Act. Third, it argues that the Obama administration has remained extremely cautious in introducing initiatives aimed at strengthening the safety net especially since Republicans control the House since their victory in the 2010 mid-term November elections. Fourth, the article concludes by re-evaluating the politics of social assistance in the American context.