"In the first article of the series, published Tuesday, Reuters traces the ways in which the federal government has acted as a wealth redistribution machine, not towards those in need, but upwards towards the already wealthy. According to the report, an analysis of decennial Census data, the federal government has "emerged as one of the most potent factors driving income inequality in the United States - especially in the nation's capital."
The report cites public policy decisions, government 'outsourcing' of projects to private firms, weakened unions, a shift in labor demand from low-skill jobs to high-skill professions and, most broadly, sweeping tax cuts, particularly during the Bush administration, that largely benefit top income earners and the corporations, lobbying firms, and law firms they work for."
