The White House is working to adopt policies to allow Americans to have more babies, even as it cuts back on federally funded day care.
That’s because they want a stronger family unit, which they argue comes from one parent staying home.
White House staffers have discussed several options for encouraging parents to stay home with their children, three people who have been part of the discussions told The New York Times.
Ideas being discussed include giving families more money for each child they have, removing federal tax credits for day care, and opening up federal lands for home construction. Advocates argue that if families can spend less on housing, more of them will be able to live on a single income.
For instance, Indiana Republican Senator Jim Banks recently introduced a bill that would, in effect, pay stay-at-home parents. Republicans have also suggested that the child tax credit be expanded partly by removing tax breaks intended for working parents to pay for day care.
Missouri Republican Senator Josh Hawley has suggested expanding the child tax credit to $5,000 per child in the hope that the additional money would allow parents to work less. During last year’s presidential campaign, Vice President JD Vance also supported a $5,000 child tax credit. While the measure has bipartisan support, most Democrats also back subsidies for day care.
Even as the White House pushes a conservative social agenda promoting traditional marriage and gender roles, studies are unclear whether a child does better at a day care or at home with a parent.
This comes as many American families need two incomes to survive. Nearly 65 percent of mothers in two-parent households with at least one child under the age of 18 work outside the home, a figure which has increased significantly over the course of the past half-century. Similarly, child care costs have also increased, with an average cost of $11,000 per child per year as of 2023. Families in many larger cities pay more than double that.
Conservatives argue that they’re not pushing mothers to leave the workforce, simply giving them a choice to work less if they want to do so. They note that a Gallup poll in March found that 60 percent of American women say that they would prefer to work part-time or stay at home. Thirty-seven percent of men said the same.
“President Trump believes parents know how to best raise their children, and this administration is pursuing policies that empower parents with the flexibility to make the best choices for their kids while lowering child care costs,” White House spokesperson Taylor Rogers told The Times.
Conservatives generally don’t say which parent could decide to remain at home. However, more than 80 percent of stay-at-home parents are women.
Hawley told The Times that the effort is “not just about increasing the total number of children.”
“It is increasing the number of families, mothers, and fathers, and the ability of the family to spend time together,” he added.
Banks told the paper that Democrats have been “blocking the child care options many families prefer, like using a church-run day care center or having a parent or grandparent care for their children.”
Democrats often slam Republicans for their resistance to policies that make it easier for mothers to work.
“You want to help families? How about paid family and medical leave?” Connecticut Democratic Rep. Rosa DeLauro told The Times.
Parents say that the suggested legislation with the largest child tax credits isn’t enough for one parent to stay home.
Katie Holler, 27, from Ohio, has two young children.
“It’s not based in the experience of families who have to work,” she said. “It’s pennies when you need dollars.”
