A Day In The Life Of A Welfare Recipient, According To GOP Legislation

[David_42]

The posts of some members on this board are terrifyingly close to this portrayal.
A Day In The Life Of A Welfare Recipient, According To GOP Legislation

How do people who benefit from the government's safety net programs spend their money? If you based your understanding on some of the recent Republican proposals to reform those programs, you might think being on public assistance is a righteous party.

However onerous the reality of being on welfare may be, Republicans in the U.S. Congress and in state legislatures around the country seem bent on portraying welfare recipients as having a lavish and leisurely lifestyle on the government's dime.

Here is what a welfare recipient's day looks like through the lens of recent Republican proposals to reform the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, better known as food stamps, and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, the program most commonly described as "welfare." These lawmakers sometimes base their proposals on anecdotes, sometimes on documented instances of benefits being spent in questionable ways -- but always on the idea that poor people shouldn't be having any fun at the taxpayer's expense.

Surf and turf for breakfast.

In February, Missouri state Rep. Rick Brattin (R) proposed banning food stamps recipients from using their Electronic Benefit Transfer cards to buy steak and seafood.

"I have seen people purchasing filet mignons and crab legs with their EBT cards," Brattin explained to The Washington Post. "When I can't afford it on my pay, I don't want people on the taxpayer's dime to afford those kinds of foods either."

SNAP distributes benefits on EBT cards to 46 million Americans. These benefits can be used for any food product as long as it isn't a hot prepared meal, so steak and seafood are eligible items. Still, Brattin's bill isn't going anywhere.

Then some actual surfing.

In 2013, Fox News ran several segments on Jason Greenslate, an unemployed San Diego surfer who bragged about receiving food stamps. He became known as the "food stamp surfer" after footage showed him buying sushi and lobster with a SNAP debit card.

Greenslate seen in a Fox News segment in 2013.

Greenslate became a poster child for Republicans in the House of Representatives,who highlighted his story in their efforts to reimpose limits on how long able-bodied adults without dependents can receive SNAP benefits.

"You can no longer sit on your couch or ride a surfboard like Jason in California and expect the federal taxpayer to feed you," Rep. Tim Huelskamp (R-Kan.) said on the House floor in 2013.

The time limit on SNAP benefits, a feature of the 1996 welfare reform law, had been waived in almost every state because of high unemployment rates caused by the Great Recession. House Republicans at the time were seeking to reinstate the limits. They didn't immediately get their way, but since then, many states have independently reimposed a three-month time limit on benefits for able-bodied adults with no dependents, resulting in thousands of people being dropped from the program's rolls.

Able-bodied working-age adults without dependents made up just 10.5 percent of all SNAP recipients in 2013, according to the most recent data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which oversees the program.

Maybe buy a car?

During a speech about out-of-control federal spending on the Senate floor in 2013, Sen. Dan Coats (R-Ind.) lamented some eyebrow-raising alleged food stamp purchases.

"Every day we hear of reports of food stamps being used to pay for beer, cigarettes, cell phone bills and even cars," Coats said. "That hardly needs to be mentioned because it is something we have come to understand -- there is a lot of misuse of tax dollars."

While food stamps can only be used for food, a SNAP recipient could sell their EBT card and use the cash for illicit purposes. Still, the average SNAP benefit is only about $125 per month per person, so it would have to be a pretty cheap car.

Mid-morning seance with a psychic advisor.

In 2014, Alabama passed a set of bills placing new restrictions on TANF benefits, including one that prohibited recipients from spending benefits at any businesses that provide psychic services. Since then, other state legislation has targeted the use of benefits for fortune-telling and related services.

Nationally, TANF serves about 1.5 million families. It's unclear how many are using their benefits to pay their spiritual mediums, but if you believe these psychics in Kansas, it's probably not very many.

 

[S.J.]

Food stamps should not cover steaks, seafood, chips, etc.

 

[David_42]

Food stamps should not cover steaks, seafood, chips, etc.

That's not the point of this thread, then again, why are you so obsessed with what the poor use food stamps on? What do you define as "sea food?"

 

[S.J.]

Food stamps should not cover steaks, seafood, chips, etc.

That's not the point of this thread, then again, why are you so obsessed with what the poor use food stamps on? What do you define as "sea food?"

I'm not obsessed. You started the thread, YOU'RE the one who is obsessed with it, stupid.

 

[Auld Phart]

The posts of some members on this board are terrifyingly close to this portrayal.
A Day In The Life Of A Welfare Recipient, According To GOP Legislation

How do people who benefit from the government's safety net programs spend their money? If you based your understanding on some of the recent Republican proposals to reform those programs, you might think being on public assistance is a righteous party.

However onerous the reality of being on welfare may be, Republicans in the U.S. Congress and in state legislatures around the country seem bent on portraying welfare recipients as having a lavish and leisurely lifestyle on the government's dime.

Here is what a welfare recipient's day looks like through the lens of recent Republican proposals to reform the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, better known as food stamps, and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, the program most commonly described as "welfare." These lawmakers sometimes base their proposals on anecdotes, sometimes on documented instances of benefits being spent in questionable ways -- but always on the idea that poor people shouldn't be having any fun at the taxpayer's expense.

Surf and turf for breakfast.

In February, Missouri state Rep. Rick Brattin (R) proposed banning food stamps recipients from using their Electronic Benefit Transfer cards to buy steak and seafood.

"I have seen people purchasing filet mignons and crab legs with their EBT cards," Brattin explained to The Washington Post. "When I can't afford it on my pay, I don't want people on the taxpayer's dime to afford those kinds of foods either."

SNAP distributes benefits on EBT cards to 46 million Americans. These benefits can be used for any food product as long as it isn't a hot prepared meal, so steak and seafood are eligible items. Still, Brattin's bill isn't going anywhere.

Then some actual surfing.

In 2013, Fox News ran several segments on Jason Greenslate, an unemployed San Diego surfer who bragged about receiving food stamps. He became known as the "food stamp surfer" after footage showed him buying sushi and lobster with a SNAP debit card.

Greenslate seen in a Fox News segment in 2013.

Greenslate became a poster child for Republicans in the House of Representatives,who highlighted his story in their efforts to reimpose limits on how long able-bodied adults without dependents can receive SNAP benefits.

"You can no longer sit on your couch or ride a surfboard like Jason in California and expect the federal taxpayer to feed you," Rep. Tim Huelskamp (R-Kan.) said on the House floor in 2013.

The time limit on SNAP benefits, a feature of the 1996 welfare reform law, had been waived in almost every state because of high unemployment rates caused by the Great Recession. House Republicans at the time were seeking to reinstate the limits. They didn't immediately get their way, but since then, many states have independently reimposed a three-month time limit on benefits for able-bodied adults with no dependents, resulting in thousands of people being dropped from the program's rolls.

Able-bodied working-age adults without dependents made up just 10.5 percent of all SNAP recipients in 2013, according to the most recent data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which oversees the program.

Maybe buy a car?

During a speech about out-of-control federal spending on the Senate floor in 2013, Sen. Dan Coats (R-Ind.) lamented some eyebrow-raising alleged food stamp purchases.

"Every day we hear of reports of food stamps being used to pay for beer, cigarettes, cell phone bills and even cars," Coats said. "That hardly needs to be mentioned because it is something we have come to understand -- there is a lot of misuse of tax dollars."

While food stamps can only be used for food, a SNAP recipient could sell their EBT card and use the cash for illicit purposes. Still, the average SNAP benefit is only about $125 per month per person, so it would have to be a pretty cheap car.

Mid-morning seance with a psychic advisor.

In 2014, Alabama passed a set of bills placing new restrictions on TANF benefits, including one that prohibited recipients from spending benefits at any businesses that provide psychic services. Since then, other state legislation has targeted the use of benefits for fortune-telling and related services.

Nationally, TANF serves about 1.5 million families. It's unclear how many are using their benefits to pay their spiritual mediums, but if you believe these psychics in Kansas, it's probably not very many.

Another selection from the Democrats version of Grimms Fairy Tales?

 

[defcon4]

Another selection from the Democrats version of Grimms Fairy Tales?

The kid bot wanted to stir shit… didn't work out for him…