‘Hunger Is Getting Worse!’ McGovern Rips Into Trump Cabinet Member For Kicking Americans Off Food Stamps

Rep. Jim McGovern (D-MA) ripped into Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins at a Thursday House hearing for celebrating the “good news” of people losing federal food assistance.

During the hearing, McGovern brought up Rollins’s “good news” comment while blasting the administration.

“The average SNAP benefit is only about $2 per person per meal. You can’t even afford to buy your Dunkin’ coffee with the average SNAP benefit right now. So do you stand by your comment that kicking people off of food assistance is somehow good news?” McGovern asked, referring to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.

Earlier this month, Rollins said on Newsmax, “The good news: In just one year alone, we’ve already moved 4.5 million people off of SNAP.”

Rollins added, “We’re going to be pulling more and more people off.”

She defended her comment on Thursday by saying she was referring to fraud in the system.

“So sir, most of those based on the numbers were fraudulent. The 700,000 number of children is not correct. That is not a nonpartisan group that gave you that number. And again, we should — we’re back to where we were pre-COVID — and this idea that we should put more and more people on food stamps is just not correct,” Rollins said.

“Well, with all due respect, Madam Secretary, I mean I’ve talked to many of the people who have lost their benefits. They haven’t been moved off a SNAP, they have been kicked off a SNAP,” McGovern replied. “These are people who actually need and rely on this food assistance to provide basic nutrition for their families. Hunger is getting worse in the United States of America. We all should be ashamed of that.”

In a Fox News interview this month, Rollins talked up new restrictions to the SNAP program, saying they are “closing the loopholes.”

“We’re moving the people off of SNAP that shouldn’t be on,” she said. “We’ve had 1,000 arrests of people who’ve been fraudulently taking advantage of the program. We’ve granted 22 waivers — no more soda, no more junk food in 22 states around America. Hopefully, that number is expanding — if you’re using SNAP dollars.”

Watch above via CSPAN.

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