Food Stamp Cuts Dramatized By Democrats Taking 'SNAP Challenge'

[babylonsister]

Food Stamp Cuts Dramatized By Democrats Taking 'SNAP Challenge'
Arthur Delaney
Posted: 06/12/2013 4:01 pm EDT | Updated: 06/12/2013 8:52 pm EDT


WASHINGTON -- To protest nutrition assistance cuts this week, nearly 30 Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives are limiting their food budgets to what a person gets from food stamps.

It's called the SNAP Challenge, and they're doing it because the House will soon consider legislation that cuts the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program by 2.5 percent, likely depriving nearly 2 million Americans of benefits. Currently 47 million Americans receive an average monthly benefit of $133 from the program.

In the past several years hundreds of politicians have undertaken the stunt diets to dramatize the difficulty of daily life on a food assistance budget. Newark Mayor Cory Booker received wide attention for dining on less than $5 per day in December.

Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.) detailed her grocery plans in a Wednesday blog post.

"Getting your budget down to $4.50 a day is complicated. You need to try to make sure you have enough protein, limit your sodium, and find good vegetables," she wrote, adding that she bought crackers, peanut butter, and an array of canned goods.

snip//

Other Democrats taking the SNAP challenge include Reps. Sandy Levin (Mich.) Jim McGovern (Mass.), Joe Crowley (N.Y.), Mark Pocan (Wisc.), Doris Matsui (Calif.) and Del. Eleanor Holmes-Norton (D.C.). Lee's office said it would release a full list of names on Thursday. The Food Research Action Center, a nutrition advocacy group, has encouraged public officials to take the SNAP Challenge since 2006.

more...

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/12/food-stamp-cuts_n_3429301.html?ref=topbar

[sinkingfeeling]

1. It's not the Democrats who should be doing this, but the GOP/Tea Partiers.

[Buns_of_Fire]

4. Fat chance of that ever happening.

Just ONE Bloody Mary runs more than $4.50, which blows most of their daily budgets clean out of the water.

By being elected, many of them have hit the gravy train, and they somehow figure they deserve LOTS of gravy.

As opposed to some of their constituents, who seriously consider "Gravy Train" as a primary source of nutrition.

[DreamGypsy]

2. The article left out Pete Defazio (Oregon)...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1017&pid=124994

[Bluenorthwest]

5. The 'moderate centrists' don't like Peter, the ommission is intentional

They are bogged down in contempt for him because he pressures the precious executive branch to rise up and meet their potential.

[catnhatnh]

3. Not to hijack your thread or flog one of mine. There was a post on Rep. Peter DeFazio trying ..

...even though congress folk take the challenge they start with advantages they don't recognize:

"Today there was a post on Rep. Peter DeFazio trying to eat for a week on food stamps and I think it would be great if every member of congress tried it. He had just over $30 dollars to spend and when he went to the checkout and hit $32 and change he removed items from the cart to hit his mark. Then he removed more items to represent the proposed 20% cut in food stamps. Kudos to him.

But now let's look at what normal hardships he missed.He was somehow transported at no cost to a full service food supermarket and for those without cars and living in "food deserts" it may be more normal to shop in "convenience stores". He had an experienced food stamp shopper to advise him-which certainly ain't a normal perk. He had time to comparison shop and no apparent child care responsibilities. He had a computer and printer and internet access to print out the internet coupons he was using."


If you want the rest: http://www.democraticunderground.com/10023006250

Or the original story with Video of Rep .Defazio: http://www.democraticunderground.com/1017124994

[Bluenorthwest]

6. The woman with DeFazio at the market is the director of Food For Lane County

which is our Foodbank. A nonprofit and well run service organization. My guess is that Ms Hughes is very aware of all of the other difficulties facing those who are actually poor not doing a theatrical demonstration to educate the well off about the cuts they are demanding to the least among us.
A few of your points are not as applicable as you might think they are. We don't have urban 'food deserts' here. It is easy to get free computer access here. Transportation, free at Pete's age, although he probably did not ride the bus. He drives an old classic car of some sort. But Seniors ride free, also disabled people. The market he shopped at is Employee owned, and it has very good customer service indeed.

[catnhatnh]

7. All True...

how well does that reflect the situation of the majority of food stamp recipients nation wide?

[DreamGypsy]

9. It doesn't at all reflect the situation of the majority of food stamp recipients...

...which is exactly why Pete is working to defeat the reduction of SNAP funding in the f f f f Farm Bill.

[hamster]

8. Any congressperson

doing this is just playing a role. They know they'll get to back to their health-care, comfort, leisure and large salaries. For people on assistance, it may never end. It seems rather patronizing. It reminds me of the Pulp song, "Common People" "You will never understand/ how it feels to live your life/with no meaning of control/and with nowhere else to go.''