Letter to Mr. Eric M. Bost, Undersecretary for Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services

June 22, 2004

The Honorable Eric M. Bost
Undersecretary for Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services
U.S. Department of Agriculture
Jamie L. Whitten Building , Room 240-E
Washington , D.C. 20250

Dear Undersecretary Bost:

You are charged with an awesome responsibility. Fighting hunger in America requires strong, thoughtful and forthright leadership. Instead, you have displayed a disparaging attitude toward the victims of hunger and an astonishing lack of awareness of what is happening beyond the beltway. We had hoped that you would use your important position to advocate against hunger in America , not against the hungry. It is clear to us that your callous and biased attitude make you unfit for the high position you hold. We therefore call on you to resign.

Let us assure you that we are not alone in questioning your capacity to take on this important cause. Your recent comments in the Columbus Dispatch, in which you attribute the increase in food bank distributions and hunger statistics to "people taking the easy way out," got the attention of Ohio 's entire hunger network.

Sir, the people of our state are proud. They have worked hard to overcome economic adversity. It is a hard thing for them to wait in line at a food bank, even when they are desperate to care for their families. It does them a great disservice when you suggest that because food pantries do not require income documentation, "not everyone receiving provisions is truly in need."

Hunger in America is a national tragedy. And that tragedy is compounded when those charged with responding to this very genuine need instead cast aspersions on the victims. We recognize that the policies of the Bush Administration make your job very difficult. Clearly, things are going in the wrong direction. Since January 2000, Ohio has lost 263,000 jobs. More than nine percent of the adult population in our state lives in poverty. Even more troubling, more than 17 percent of children under five years old in our state live in poverty. This situation cries out for attention, not obfuscation.

In short, Mr. Bost, America deserves better. We deserve an Administration in Washington committed to eradicating hunger. And we deserve an Undersecretary for Food and Nutrition who will truly be an advocate for those in need. Certainly there is another post in the Administration or the private sector that would be better suited to your temperament and values. For the good of those who you are charged with serving in your current capacity, we ask that you resign.

Ted Strickland
Member of Congress

Marcy Kaptur
Member of Congress

Sherrod Brown
Member of Congress

Dennis Kucinich
Member of Congress

Stephanie Tubbs Jones
Member of Congress

Tim Ryan
Member of Congress