Let’s not forget about the poor of this country.

With the economy in a tailspin, pundits and elected officials are talking a lot about the middle class — and hardly at all about the poor.

But during President Bush’s years in office, poverty increased dramatically. In August 2002, the Census Bureau reported that the number of people living in poverty in the U.S. was 34.6 million. By 2005, the number of poor rose to 37 million.

In February 2007, a study by the McClatchy newspapers reported that the number of individuals living in extreme poverty in the U.S. had increased 26 percent from 2000 to 2007. The number of “severely poor” was rising 56 percent faster than the number of individuals classified as just “poor,” according to the same study. (“Severely poor” was defined in 2005 as a family of four earning less than $9,903 — half the poverty rate — or individuals making less than $5,080.)

This poverty brings pain and hunger.

Last year, 691,000 children went hungry, according to the Department of Agriculture, and 36.2 million adults and children didn’t have sufficient food. That’s one out of every eight people in America.

The policies of the Bush administration promoted poverty and denied low-income persons the chance to live a dignified life.

The Bush administration for seven years refused to increase the federal minimum wage before finally relenting when the bill was tied to funding for the Iraq War. Attempts to decrease spending on federal programs that provide housing and food assistance to the poor also litter the Bush years. And Bush’s veto of the Children’s Health Insurance Program this year testifies to his insensitivity.

With an Obama administration coming into office, and a strong Democratic majority in Congress, this malign neglect must end.

In his first 100 days, President Obama should extend unemployment benefits, strengthen food stamp allotments, sign the children’s health care bill and create a public works program.

This will curb poverty and will restore our economy at the same time.

A year and a half ago, well before it was clear he was a viable candidate, Obama spoke eloquently about this issue. “The moral question about poverty in America — How can a country like this allow it? — has an easy answer: We can't.”

Now he has the power to do something about it. He should use that power — right away.

Brian Gilmore, a poet and a lawyer, lives in Takoma Park, Md. He can be reached at pmproj [at] progressive [dot] org.