National Anti-Hunger Week

Floor Speech

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Ms. DeLAURO. Mr. Speaker, this is National Anti-Hunger Week. The United States is the richest nation on Earth. We are a land of abundance. And yet millions of people in our country go to bed hungry every single night.

They are called food insecure, but what it is is that they are hungry, and programs like the food stamp program, the SNAP program, have enjoyed bipartisan support for decades because great leaders, people like George McGovern, Bob Dole, Ted Kennedy, Jack Kennedy, and people like Jake Javits, said that we have a moral obligation to combat hunger in the United States.

What we need to do is to strengthen the SNAP program, not sabotage it. This administration's new proposals to implement strict work requirements are a thinly veiled attempt to throw people off of the program.

The vast majority of SNAP recipients already work if they can. USDA's most recent data shows that work rates have been increasing year after year.

The food box proposal is an attack on the dignity of the families that have fallen on hard times. Undermining SNAP will not eradicate hunger. It throws many Americans into deep poverty and desperation at times when they need support the most.

Food insecurity affects veterans, working families, children, workers, the unemployed, and seniors. It is about lifting people out of poverty. It is about supporting our economy. It works for households with children.

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