John Washington III Says Child-Support Enforcement Should Be Judged by How Families Actually Fare
John Washington III, a 2028 presidential candidate, argued that five decades of child-support enforcement should be measured by families' real outcomes, not just the totals collected — and he asked who benefits, who struggles, and whether the government is held accountable.
John Washington III is turning a long-running family policy into an accountability question. For decades, he wrote, Americans have been told child-support enforcement protects families, but history shows some policies punished families for having a man in the home.
John Washington III traced the system's design to its beginnings: the federal program began in 1975, and part of its design, he wrote, was reimbursing welfare costs; in 1999, a new incentive structure rewarded states for collections. Families receive billions in support, he acknowledged, but collections alone do not prove fairness or family stability.
His test, as he framed it, is outcomes. "We should ask who benefits, who struggles, and whether the government is held accountable for families' real outcomes, not just totals collected," John Washington III wrote. "Fifty-one years in, Americans deserve clear answers."
