Last week the House of Representatives, by a vote of 251-166, passed a comprehensive Farm Bill that had been in negotiations for nearly two years. Yesterday, the Agriculture Act of 2014 passed the Senate on a 68-32 count. It now goes to the President to sign. Mr. Obama has said he will do so. According to The New York Times the bill cuts $8 Billion from the Federal Food Stamp program.
Feeding America, a food bank coalition, estimates that as a result of this bill every household affected will eat 34 fewer meals a month. In the Times article cited above writer Ron Nixon estimates that 850,000 households will be affected, each losing about $90 per month in food purchasing power.
As Americans work hard to move beyond this crippling recession, this bill creates a tragic loss for its poorest families trying to survive day to day. Couple this with Congress' refusal to reinstate unemployment benefits for its citizens unable to find a job and you have a tsunami of bad economic news for Americans trying to continue to make it in the world's richest nation.
And, if that is not bad enough, according to a report by CBS News, this bill gives millions of dollars to businesses for the sole purpose of advertising their products. Sunkist alone will receive $1.8 million. Republican lawmakers are willing to provide large corporations with subsidies to pay for their advertising campaigns, but cut a program that puts food in children's bellies.
The food stamp cuts in this bill will evidently also have an impact on Wall Street. The first mention of this was in a statement released last week by Walmart. The New York Times' Elizabeth Harris reported that the company announced it was cutting it's 4th quarter earnings forecast due to food stamp cuts and a harsh winter.
Ms. Harris wrote that Charles Holley, Jr., Walmart's CFO, emphasized that the reduction in the SNAP program, commonly known as Food Stamps, was, "greater than we expected." He went on to say that Walmart customers, as a result, just had less money to spend.
These remarks were based on last year's cuts. The new Agriculture Act adds another $8 Billion in future reductions. Walmart, which has built a huge business catering to households with low income, is smart to get this news out regarding this drop in projected income. I think we will see this message from all food-related businesses soon, downgrading their profit projections for the coming year. So both Wall Street giants and our poorest citizens will suffer because Republicans want less money spent on their poorest constituents.
Republicans in Congress do not seem to believe the message of organizations like Feeding America regarding the effects of their draconian cuts. After all, the poor do not have a lobbying voice in Congress. Perhaps, however, they will listen when giant American corporations begin sounding the alarm in lost earnings and profits.
In my opinion, the Tea Party wants to destroy the American economy at both the top and the bottom. Poor people are not the problem in America. Lunacy in governance is the disease we need to focus on resolving.
Feeding America, a food bank coalition, estimates that as a result of this bill every household affected will eat 34 fewer meals a month. In the Times article cited above writer Ron Nixon estimates that 850,000 households will be affected, each losing about $90 per month in food purchasing power.
As Americans work hard to move beyond this crippling recession, this bill creates a tragic loss for its poorest families trying to survive day to day. Couple this with Congress' refusal to reinstate unemployment benefits for its citizens unable to find a job and you have a tsunami of bad economic news for Americans trying to continue to make it in the world's richest nation.
And, if that is not bad enough, according to a report by CBS News, this bill gives millions of dollars to businesses for the sole purpose of advertising their products. Sunkist alone will receive $1.8 million. Republican lawmakers are willing to provide large corporations with subsidies to pay for their advertising campaigns, but cut a program that puts food in children's bellies.The food stamp cuts in this bill will evidently also have an impact on Wall Street. The first mention of this was in a statement released last week by Walmart. The New York Times' Elizabeth Harris reported that the company announced it was cutting it's 4th quarter earnings forecast due to food stamp cuts and a harsh winter.
Ms. Harris wrote that Charles Holley, Jr., Walmart's CFO, emphasized that the reduction in the SNAP program, commonly known as Food Stamps, was, "greater than we expected." He went on to say that Walmart customers, as a result, just had less money to spend.
These remarks were based on last year's cuts. The new Agriculture Act adds another $8 Billion in future reductions. Walmart, which has built a huge business catering to households with low income, is smart to get this news out regarding this drop in projected income. I think we will see this message from all food-related businesses soon, downgrading their profit projections for the coming year. So both Wall Street giants and our poorest citizens will suffer because Republicans want less money spent on their poorest constituents.
Republicans in Congress do not seem to believe the message of organizations like Feeding America regarding the effects of their draconian cuts. After all, the poor do not have a lobbying voice in Congress. Perhaps, however, they will listen when giant American corporations begin sounding the alarm in lost earnings and profits.
In my opinion, the Tea Party wants to destroy the American economy at both the top and the bottom. Poor people are not the problem in America. Lunacy in governance is the disease we need to focus on resolving.
No comments:
Post a Comment