Rep. Joe Pitts, who represents Pennsylvania's 16th Congressional District, released a statement today in response to new government numbers that show nearly 44 million Americans are living in poverty. That's 1 in 7 Americans. How's that for hope and change? The poverty rate leaped to 14.3 percent last year, the highest rate since 1994.

Rep. Pitts' statement follows:

"This underscores that this recession is not just about banks, bureaucrats, and statistics. I've seen the effects of increased poverty first-hand as I've visited food banks throughout the district. Real people are hurting and there should be no margin for error in our efforts to help people, revive the economy, and create jobs.

"Washington's response to the recession has so far been ideological, partisan, and ineffective. Good ideas have been ignored while Congress has been distracted by other fights that should have waited. This is the No. 1 reason Americans are so angry right now."

The full report is available at: http://www.census.gov/prod/2010pubs/p60-238.pdf