Congress Mulls Cutting Food Aid to Poor

iWon News: "WASHINGTON (AP) - Cuts in food programs for the poor are getting support in Congress as an alternative to President Bush's idea of slicing billions of dollars from the payments that go to large farm operations.

Senior Republicans in both the House and Senate are open to small reductions in farm subsidies, but they adamantly oppose the deep cuts sought by Bush to hold down future federal deficits.

The president wants to lower the maximum subsidies that can be collected each year by any one farm operation from $360,000 to $250,000. He also asked Congress to cut by 5 percent all farm payments, and he wants to close loopholes that enable some growers to annually collect millions of dollars in subsidies.

Instead, Republican committee chairmen are looking to carve savings from nutrition and land conservation programs that are also run by the Agriculture Department. The government is projected to spend $52 billion this year on nutrition programs like food stamps, school lunches and special aid to low-income pregnant women and children. Farm subsidies will total less than half that, $24 billion."

Lets look at the choices here. We can decide that some people that the Government is already paying 360,000 a year will only get 250,000 a year on top of what they earn. Or we can decide to take away food from those people already earning less than 12,000 a year. And to think all you poor slobs that voted for Republicans because of their Morals. Infortunately these morals are not the type that will feed your children. He only feeds the childrens of the rich, after all if the poor people die they won't be around to suck up the money anymore and then the rich can have it all.

I am not a big fan of welfare or farm subsidies. Lived in OK, KS area for a decade and most of those farmers spend the vast majority of their time sitting on their asses drinking coffee at the local mini mart. And from the size of those bellys they ain't hurting for beer or food. This is not to say they don't work hard during the season but it is certainly not the same soul killing work it 50-100 years ago. The combines and enclosed tractors have ac/heat and cd players. And then there is the conservation property. The government pays them not to grow anything and the farmer turns around and sometimes charges up to 1500 a week for hunters to use this conservation area as a protected hunting ground. Trust me the farmers have a lot of free time.

On the other side of the coin the people who qualify for food stamps are making less than 12,0000 a year usually have the poorest housing choices that they can afford and everyone from their landlords to the utilities and car insurance people take advantage of their lack of money and credit. This just sucks. I am a registered republican but I must say I am ashamed of what they have turned the party into.