For over four decades, the Food Stamp Program, which Congress renamed the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) in 2008, has had bipartisan support as the nation's most important anti-hunger program. Even the far reaching welfare reform legislation of the mid 90's left it intact.
However, the House-passed Republican budget drafted by Cong. Paul Ryan would cut it by 17% and turn the program into state block grants easily slashed further. As perhaps the legacy of his now-ended presidential campaign, Newt Gingrich denigrated the Food Stamp Program by tying President Obama to it as "the Food Stamp President." Mitt Romney, while saying he is "not concerned about the very poor" because the "safety net" protects them, supports shifting food stamps to the states as a block grant and endorsed the House Republican bill cutting funding for 8 million of the 45 million participants. Cong. Darryl Issa (R-CA) chaired a House Government Reform Committee hearing March 8 entitled "Food Stamp Fraud as a Business Model" and released a video, "Food Stamp Fraud; Exposed."
The only problem is that each of the allegations is overwhelmingly untrue. At the hearing, Committee Ranking Democrat Elijah Cummings (Baltimore) countered Issa by pointing out, "The need for the program is at a historic high, and fraud is at an all-time low. The true purpose of this hearing may be to discredit the entire program, to justify draconian cuts."
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6 comments:
Beans and rice keep people from starving
Obama is the Food Stamp King. Obamanomics.
yeah 921, because we magically went into a recession in Jan. 2009.
9:54, come on get serious, our government is using tax dollars to give free cell phones to the lazy. and you're gonna try and tell us that there isn't anyone receiving food stamps that's not abusing the system? you are a complete fool!
954, never said that. My comment was in response to the crud 921 spewed. And FYI, that free the free phone program started with the Telcom. Act of 96. You clowns try to paint it as some Obama creation because you drink up all the GOP kool aid from fools like Hannity.
954 and 123-Obamanomics has led to the weakest recovery out of a recession in history. Look it up. Facts don't lie. btw, examine federal spending during Bush's 2 terms split into when the GOP was in the majority, and when the Dems tookover the majorities in Congress in Jan 2007. But you'd probably blame Bush for that too.
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