President Obama famously accused Representative Paul Ryan (R., Wisc.) of “thinly veiled Social Darwinism” for one of his budgets. It will take a special kind of cynicism to make that claim about Ryan’s new anti-poverty proposal. Obama’s partisans will no doubt find a way, but fair-minded observers will see a creative, thoughtful approach to a topic that’s often politically neglected. Ryan proposes and endorses a range of ideas to fix the safety net and address the root causes of poverty. He would offer states the option of an “Opportunity Grant” to replace, dollar for dollar, the amount of money they...