Trump wants to slash food stamps and replace them with a ‘Blue Apron-type program’

Washington Post ^

[Sub-Driver]

Trump wants to slash food stamps and replace them with a ‘Blue Apron-type program’

By Caitlin Dewey February 12 at 6:57 PM

The Trump administration wants to slash food aid to low-income families and make up the difference with a box of canned goods — a change that Office of Management and budget director Mick Mulvaney described in a Monday briefing as a “Blue Apron-type program.”

“What we do is propose that for folks who are on food stamps, part — not all, part — of their benefits come in the actual sort of, and I don't want to steal somebody's copyright, but a Blue Apron-type program where you actually receive the food instead of receive the cash,” Mulvaney said. “It lowers the cost to us because we can buy [at wholesale prices] whereas they have to buy it at retail. It also makes sure they're getting nutritious food. So we're pretty excited about that.”

Mulvaney's remarks drew raised eyebrows from some critics, who accuse the Trump administration official of drawing an unfair comparison between the food stamp program, which delivers an average of $1.37 per meal to America's poorest, and a high-end meal kit that runs $10 per serving.

[raiderboy]

Make AMERICA WORK again!! Get these loafers off their a$$es!!

[Palio di Siena]

MRE’s.

[montag813]

My teenage son just said "30% of people will drop off, like self-deporting!" EXACTLY! that's ma boy!

SO many people also LIE about how many kids they have to get more cash. But NO ONE is going to lie to get 60 boxes of Cheerios. BRILLIANT!

[Chauncey Gardiner]

Why not MREs. Good enough for our GI’s.

[Hypo2]

It would double as an exercise program if they were made to walk to the local food bank to pick up their daily food basket. The more often you go, the less to carry and the fresher the produce.

Have a weekly basket for those who feel stronger.

[snowtigger]

They can bloody well learn to cook. It's not rocket science.

Anyone can make a palatable meal. Just get a good cookbook and follow instructions to the letter. With experience, you can substitute contents to make it more to your individual taste, but if you follow instructions, you can eat it.

[Hypo2]

And if they work at a restaurant/grocery which allows them a free meal or produce then take that off what the taxpayer is giving them.

[TruthWillWin]

Love, it! Will enjoy also seeing the tantrums the left throws because of it.

[metmom]

About 15 years ago we lived near a welfare family. One of the little girls, maybe 6-7 years old, was watching me peel potatoes and boil them for mashed potatoes.

She asked me what I was doing and I told her.

Then she dropped this bombshell...

Says she, “Why don’t you make them the homemade way? In the microwave?”

It was all I could do to keep from laughing. I explained to her that this was just a different kind of homemade way.

[PittsburghAfterDark]

Per state and federal regulation cooked would be prepared foods, a no no.

However I would amend regulations to label live lobsters pets and therefore not eligle as a food.

[lastchance]

If SNAP is for food assistance then assisting people with food seems like a logical answer. Plus there is that whole AG part of the program.

[PGR88]

I’m old enough to remember Government Cheese.

Me too. Back in the 70's they used to distribute 10 lb blocks to my grandmother's Sr. Citizens Center all the time. Grandma would give it to our family. Powdered milk too. The USDA must have had a mountain of it back then. The cheese was good, the powdered milk was awful.

[Yulee]

“With an annual cost of $70.9 billion, SNAP makes up about 80 percent of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) budget.”

---

Food Stamps were sold to the public by politicians based upon feeding children. Unfortunately there is a lot of evidence that the program is being abused.

Children of school age are fed breakfast and lunch at school, and in some cases dinner, five days a week free. Efforts are used to feed them during the summer months. Is there ever a decrease of EBT funds, once child is in school?

Sounds like double dipping to me. If I’m wrong, can someone correct me if I’m wrong?

I’ve seen students sell their free lunch to other students for half of what the non-free lunch students would pay. The free lunch student then admitted that they were purchasing other things on the way home from school.

The Obama Administration enlarged the free/reduced lunch program in 2013. Known as the Community Eligibility Option, schools and even entire districts can now receive free breakfast and lunch if 40 percent or more of students’ families are identified as low-income.

So all students in some school districts eat free, no matter what their parents income.

If kids are going hungry the parents are using their EBT card for other purposes.

[lastchance]

Trust me, if the meal plan is via government largess the food will cost much more than $10.00.

[longfellowsmuse]

Interesting... In Vermont this is how the WIC program is administered ( at least when I lived there) Home delivery of milk, cereal etc... really cuts out the fraud. I will say it leads to some other logistic issues.. people calling up the WIC office saying they didn’t get their food or their neighbor stole it etc, but it is a better system..cost is in delivery method but if it’s canned food then it isn’t as difficult as milk and eggs and items that are perishable

[ASOC]

Everything old is new again.

Saved a lot of lives in the EU zone just after WWII. Since Detroit looks like it was bombed out.....

Using USDA Surplus Commodities, food banks replicate to old USDA food boxes that were given out instead of cash (food stamps or EBT cards. Little fraud as the person picking up had to sign for the chow and a list was checked.

Somehow, the Dems thought this food direct to consumer was "demeaning". I guess starving your kids to buy crack is demeaning as well....

I welcome the idea of a box with mystery meat, peanut butter, a bag of flour, a bag of corn meal and a box of dry milk... Basic and nutritious - no lobster.

[madison10]

Disagree about the bread and crackers. Do not assume welfare recipients can cook, or have the means to cook or store fresher items. Fresh vegetables may just go to waste.

I think the delivery idea is great as I stated above; however, prepackaged foods might be best. Sandwiches may be a staple.

Maddie10 (with one wasted degree in home economics)

[madison10]

You assume reading ability.

[lastchance]

What stamps? It’s a card.

[PGR88]

We know the owner of our local Chinese grocery store. He recently put in tanks for fresh Alaskan King Crab - $40/lb. I asked: whose got the money for that??

He didn’t even look up and said “its all EBT.” then he motioned out the window to people just leaving his parking lot “like them.” It was a Russian family, getting into a Lexus SUV.