Dr. Melissa Kearney, an economist specializing in families, says ending the expanded child tax credit was a big policy mistake. The more generous credit had lifted an estimated 3.7 million children out of poverty.

However, the University of Maryland scholar says the problem is deeper, with a continuing increase in families with only one parent. That’s the theme of her book, Two-Parent Privilege: How Americans Stopped Getting Married and Started Falling Behind. …

Political leaders made a huge mistake in either criticizing or ignoring Pat Moynihan’s warning about the “crisis” in the Black family. Back then, 26% of Black families were headed by a single parent; today, it’s two and a half times more. Whereas less than 5% of white families were headed by a single parent in 1965, there are four times as many now.

[This has only gotten worse in the last couple of decades. Progressives have attempted to completely deconstruct the traditional nuclear-family model — clearly the best in terms of outcomes for children — while hailing ad-hoc families of no particular model at all. As a means to produce healthy children, this has been a disaster. But as a means to addict people to government support, it’s been a total success … and progressives know it. — Ed]