‘Real News:’ The Food Stamp Challenge

Nov. 27, 2012 6:26pm Christopher Santarelli

Last week Newark Mayor Cory Booker tweeted a quote from the Greek Historian Plutarch, “An imbalance between rich and poor is the oldest and most fatal ailment of all republics.” With that, Booker announced he would live on food stamps for a week. The challenge: spend no more than $35 on food and drinks for yourself or a family of four for a week without accepting anything from family or friends. Food stamp rolls have sky-rocketed under the current administration, with Democrats and Republicans often at odds over the direction and funding of the program.

While the challenge calls attention to those in need by showing the difficulty in eating on $35 a week–does that present an accurate representation of the point of the social program? Are food stamps intended to be a supplement and pick-me-up, or what the long-term poor live off of entirely for food? Also, does the challenge draw attention to the larger problems that lead to the need for food stamps?

On “Real News” Tuesday the panel discussed Booker’s food stamp challenge and competing views over the point of the program:

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Comments (7)

Steve28
Posted on November 28, 2012 at 9:03am
Let’s see kids can get free breakfast and lunch at school. So that covers 2 meals foir 5 days. They get food stamps and then there are food banks in most major cities. On top on that there’s housing assistance, welfare, SSI, and Medicaid. So, what is the incentive for an uneducated person to do anything but pop out babie to stay on the government tit? They have taken away self esteem and pride and now they created a dependent class that votes in those that feed, house, and take care of their needs.

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raderby
Posted on November 28, 2012 at 5:47am
equivalists again…… not-so-secret admirers of Booker…… call this for what it is. layers of BS on layers of BS. Nope, Real News can’t.

Will the libs please sit down on the RN panel…….oh, jeesh – they are all sitting down.

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TheBurningTruth
Posted on November 27, 2012 at 9:02pm
Anyone that actually goes shopping (eliminates politicians) knows that people on food stamps have plenty of other money. We’ve all seen it where the person in front of you has their basket rung up in two groups: Things covered by food stamps and things NOT covered by food stamps. Plenty of booze and smokes along with non-food items in that second group. Then they pull out a wad of cash, or one time I saw someone pay with silver dollars. Where do you get Silver Dollars? Reno / Lake Tahoe casinos!

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- November28
  Posted on November 28, 2012 at 5:47am
  These Liberals are all about feelings, which is why every one of their policies fail. Read fresh political commentary at: http://smallcraftadvisorychronicles.blogspot.com/
  
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- raderby
  Posted on November 28, 2012 at 5:48am
  silver dollars are worth far more than a dollar…..
  
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- Oldphoto678
  Posted on November 28, 2012 at 10:45am
  Boy, you really are ignorant! There haven’t been any silver dollors paid out in years.
  
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KLT
Posted on November 27, 2012 at 8:36pm
This is the same argument the liberals use to support the “living wage” issue. people are not meant to stay on the lowest rungs of society, they are menat to grow with a little help. And then help others when they get going.

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