GOP Closing Arguments: No More Food Stamps

newsweek

Say what you will about Newt Gingrich, but the man’s record includes the Herculean comeback of Republicans in 1994, thanks partly to the "Contract With America." That's why leading Republicans and GOP candidates are looking to Gingrich as the quarterback for the 2010 campaign. So what’s he advising them to do?

Vilify food stamps. Gingrich more than most people knows that Washington tends to lock itself in intensely wonkish policy squabbles—need one say more than "budget reconciliation"?—that simply don’t resonate with the rest of the country. So to make it simple, Gingrich and his political action committee are sending a "close the deal" memo to Republican candidates, spelling it out in über simple terms. What do you want more of: paychecks or food stamps?

It’s a bit out of left field. Most of the election cycle has centered on rich people and their tax cuts rather than poor people and their food-assistance programs. But there’s a very obvious reason why Gingrich wants to frame the issue this way: food-stamp usage has historically gone up with Democrats in office, and down when Republicans were in charge. Frame it like that, and it looks as though Dems are the welfare-state-loving socialists and Republicans are the patriotic capitalists.

There are some major disagreements between the two parties on policy. To oversimplify, Republicans tend to be against all social programs, including Social Security; they are only interested in satisfying their base, which largely includes the well-off and corporations. Probably more lower-income people support the Democrats than the Republicans, as Dems are generally portrayed as those who care more about the "little guy," though that isn't always the case.

I think the fact that food stamps are increasing has to do with the poor economy and so many who are currently out of work. In other words, it's not that food stamps are given out more liberally under the Dems but rather that the need for them has increased.

The food stamp program won't be discontinued. Should it be, they can use the money saved to spend on law enforcement. People aren't going to starve, or let their loved ones starve.

It's back to the "haves and the have nots".

The have-nots, will come to your home and help themselves to your "haves".

They may strengthen the criteria and enforce current scrutinies more closely, but to do away with the program altogether would be political suicide. I wish the GOP would attempt it, in a way, so their constituents can see what they're really made of.

My two.

Newt only works for those that already have the means to help themselves. Anyone else must be too lazy to be a worthwhile American, after all, if a person is poor according to the GOP they aren't worthy of any assistance.

But Wall Street needs everyone's Social Security, because people like Bernie Madoff can do a much better job of handling everyone's retirement money than the government can.