The top priority of progressive politics may be slipping out of reach forever

A protester wearing a Trump paper mâché head stands in front of a barricade and holds a sign that reads, “Death and taxes” in New York in 2019.

Four years ago, America was on the cusp of the largest expansion of its welfare state since the 1960s. 

Under Joe Biden in 2021, House Democrats passed legislation that would have established a monthly child allowance for most families, an expansion of Medicaid’s elder care services, federal child care subsidies, universal prekindergarten, and a paid family leave program...