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From the Mouths of Babes
Author: BobR    Date: 05/16/2013 13:06:03

Throughout our history, the federal budget has always been a focus of discussion and debate. How much is too much? Can we cancel or reduce programs that help the less fortunate (or in Republicans' eyes: lazy freeloaders)? Is austerity or stimulus spending the best way to get the economy moving, and why?

It was these incessant arguments to the point of dysfunction that led Congress to create the "trigger" and the "sequester", a "nuclear" warning to get things done. Things didn't get done, and this economy-killer went off. Congress has been trying to clean up the mess ever since. Many of the aforementioned safety net programs took a beating, including WIC, which provides food for families with children.

The hangover lingers, though, so any funding bill that comes through is scrutinized for possible reductions. The latest victim of this is foodstamps, via - of all things - the Farm Bill. House Republicans apparently decided food and water was too generous to Americans, so they removed food from the bill by cutting out foodstamps:
Several Democrats took to the House floor on Wednesday to denounce large cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as the Food Stamp Program.
[...]
The cuts to SNAP would remove about 2 million people from the program, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. Additionally, roughly 210,000 children would lose access to free school meals.

Yes, they are literally taking food from the mouths of children. Apparently, since kids can't vote, Republicans don't care if they are going to school hungry. Why did they do it? For some Republicans, they think that's what Jesus would have done:
They defended the cuts after Rep. Juan Vargas, D-Calif., quoted the Book of Matthew in opposing them: "When I was hungry you gave me food. When I was thirsty, you gave me drink."

Several Republicans talked about their Christianity and said the Bible encourages people to help each other but doesn't dictate what the federal government should do. "We should be doing this as individuals, helping the poor," said Rep. Doug LaMalfa, R-Calif.

Perhaps Republicans don't realize that 14% of Americans rely on foodstamps and they vote too. They trumpet self-reliance and capitalism as the route to prosperity, yet one of the largest employers in the U.S. - WalMart - also has the largest number of employees on food stamps. These aren't lazy people - they are working, yet don't earn enough to feed their families. Republicans think, though, that balancing the budget is more important than feeding the poor.

What is NOT more important than balancing the budget, however, is cutting spending on military hardware. They are actually forcing the Pentagon to buy tanks the Pentagon says it neither wants nor needs. Yes, this is not a new story, but when juxtaposed against the cutting of basic assistance to families, it shows priorities completely at odds with what most Americans consider makes us a great country. Yes, military contractors provide a lot of jobs. It's fairly obvious, though, that protecting those jobs protects the jobs of congresspeople in DC. This is congressional self-preservation at its worst.

The Republicans are taking food from the mouths of babes to build unwanted tanks for the military. Chew on that for moment. You'll have to pay cash though - no foodstamps.
 

57 comments (Latest Comment: 05/17/2013 02:09:38 by Raine)
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