Comment by Paul Ryan

The reason universal basic income doesn’t work—well, I guess you have to define what you think success looks like. There have been many studies and many experimentations on universal basic income, so it’s not a new idea. It’s an idea that’s been tested a lot. What it does is layer unconditional cash on top of whatever other benefits people have, and it effectively pays people not to work. The biggest reason not to do it is that it pays people not to work. What happens is people have less healthy lives. They don’t reach their fulfillment, they don’t flourish, and they don’t reach the best version of themselves. They have lower behavioral statistics, lower health statistics, and lower mental health outcomes. Their kids are worse off. So, it lowers work.