SNAP Reform
From the Ag Information Network, I’m Bob Larson. House Ag Democrats lashed out at Republicans this week due to proposed SNAP reforms but failed to reverse the proposed farm bill changes in a GOP budget-cutting process.
California Republican Doug LaMalfa defended shifting up to a quarter of SNAP benefits to states with the worst overpayment rates, especially for Able Bodied Adults Without Dependents …
LaMALFA … “California has completely manipulated that policy by allowing every single ABAWD exempt from requirements by just declaring the whole state, all 58 counties, in a ‘lacking-of-jobs’ mode.”
Illinois Democrat Nikki Budzinski accused Republicans of manipulating the process with a so-called ‘reconciliation’ budget to pass the bill …
BUDZINSKI … “You’ve created a partisan package intentionally boxing out Democrats and then put part of the farm bill in it. What kind of sham process is this?”
Democrats insist they wanted to help farmers and pass a farm bill, but Wisconsin Republican Derrick Van Orden isn’t buying it …
VAN ORDEN … “I also find it rather disingenuous when our colleagues are arguing vociferously that they want to do a bipartisan farm bill when last Congress we did that, and only four members of this committee on the Democrat side voted for it, two of whom are here.”
But that didn’t change top Ag Democrat Angie Craig’s mind …
CRAIG … “Tonight, my colleagues, I am a ‘no.’ Tomorrow, I am a ‘no,’ and every day after that, I am a ‘no’ on this bill.”
Ag Republicans were also a ‘no’ on Democrat amendments to undo SNAP reforms.
