Eat the Poor

by MB Williams of Wampum.

Speaker Pelosi caved, again, to Republicans, and sold out our most vulnerable citizens.

Tentative Deal Is Reached on Stimulus Plan
January 24, 20
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Filed at 10:53 a.m. ET

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Democratic and Republican congressional leaders reached a tentative deal Thursday on tax rebates of $300 to $1,200 per household and business tax cuts to jolt the slumping economy.

Congressional officials close to the negotiations said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Republican Leader John Boehner of Ohio reached agreement in principle in a telephone call Thursday morning.

The officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the two wanted key members of their parties to sign off on the accord before any announcement.

The development came as the Bush administration, which also has been pushing for a deal, said agreement seemed imminent. "Our understanding is there is no final deal yet but they are making progress," presidential spokeswoman Dana Perino said early Thursday.

Pelosi, D-Calif., agreed to drop increases in food stamp and unemployment benefits during a Wednesday meeting in exchange for gaining rebates of at least $300 for almost everyone earning a paycheck, including low-income earners who make too little to pay income taxes.

As I indicated in a post yesterday on food stamps and food prices, FS benefits have not kept pace with recent upsurges in food prices, so that $1.50 per meal benefit buys even less. And just who are the people Pelosi has agreed to shaft?

From USDA's website:

Based on a study of data gathered in Fiscal Year 2005:

• 50 percent of all participants are children (18 or younger), and 65 percent of them live in single-parent households.

• 54 percent of food stamp households include children.

• 8 percent of all participants are elderly (age 60 or over).

• 77 percent of all benefits go to households with children, 16 percent go to households with disabled persons, and 9 percent go to households with elderly persons.

• 34 percent of households with children were headed by a single parent, the overwhelming majority of whom were women.

• The average household size is 2.3 persons.

• The average gross monthly income per food stamp household is $648.

• 46 percent of participants are white; 31 percent are African-American, non-Hispanic; 13 percent are Hispanic; 2 percent are Asian, 1 percent are Native American, and 7 percent are of unknown race or ethnicity.


(source: McClatchy)

I've been doing some research and here is the USDA's latest report on Food Stamp Participation in the US. According to the report, 37.7 million Americans (approx. 13%) are eligible to received food stamp benefits, though participation rates in the program hover around 65% (varies by state.)

Unemployment number are also readily available from the BLS. The current number of unemployed is officially 7,655,000, but that does not include 4,697,000 individuals who are listed as "currently not in the labor force" but "who currently want a job." Of those 4.7 million, 1,338,000 have been unemployed for 26 weeks or more, meaning their unemployment insurance has already run out. Another 1,182,000 have been unemployed for more than 15 weeks (but less than 26). Over the past year, the average length of unemployment has increased from 15.9 to 17.2 weeks, so over a million more former workers are counting the days until their benefits run out.

(Cross-posted.)