U.S. Rep. Jim Himes Speaks Out Against Cuts To SNAP Funding

FAIRFIELD COUNTY, Conn. - In a short speech on the floor of the House of Representatives, U.S. Rep. Jim Himes (D-4th District) spelled out his opposition to the cuts being made to the food stamp program.

Rep. Jim Himes, D-4th District, takes to the floor of the House of Representatives to criticize cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or food stamps, reading relevant passages from the Bible.

Photo Credit: YouTube User congressmanhimes

by Alissa Smith

06/14/2013 5:00 a.m.

“Mr. Speaker, the American people need to understand what's happening on the floor of the House this week with respect to the farm bill. Now, it's a complicated thing with agricultural subsidies, commodity treatments, and food stamps. And here's where the American public needs to pay attention, because the Republican majority in this chamber is using unprecedented and massive cuts to food stamps to get an agricultural bill passed," said Himes, a Greenwich resident.

A person on food stamps currently receives $4.50 a day. But the House version of the 2013 Farm Bill includes $20 billion in cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP. Food stamps were renamed SNAP as a part of the 2008 Farm Bill.

In May, U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., spent a week living on $4.80 a day as a commitment to show how much and what kind of food could be purchased by those on food stamps.

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