Final answer:
The increase in poverty was a blemish on the president's otherwise impressive record.
Step-by-step explanation:
War on Poverty, expansive social welfare legislation introduced in the 1960s by the administration of U.S. Pres. Lyndon B. Johnson and intended to help end poverty in the United States. The War on Poverty and its associated reforms became a lightning rod for conservative criticism as well as an idealistic touchstone for liberals for generations.
And, the increase in poverty was a blemish on the president's otherwise impressive record. Despite the president's efforts to address poverty through initiatives like the 'war on poverty,' the persistence of poverty in the wealthiest nation was seen as a failure.
This increase in poverty undermined the president's overall success and tarnished his legacy. Although many of the central programs of the War on Poverty continued well after the 1960s, its legacy remains controversial.
Some economists maintain that Johnson’s efforts did not achieve a substantial reduction in the rate of poverty; other critics have gone so far as to claim that his programs locked poor people into lives of government dependency.