[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 123 (Wednesday, September 18, 2013)]
[House]
[Page H5599]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 WEIGH OUR OPTIONS BEFORE CUTTING SNAP

  (Ms. SEWELL of Alabama asked and was given permission to address the 
House for 1 minute.)
  Ms. SEWELL of Alabama. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to express my strong 
opposition to H.R. 3102, calling for a $40 billion cut in critically 
needed funding for nutrition assistance programs.
  You know, Mr. Speaker, struggling to encourage my Republican 
colleagues to take a walk in the shoes of those who suffer from food 
insecurity has become uncomfortably common in this Chamber. In this 
House, we have moved beyond poor economic doctrine and immoral social 
policy, and we're now dealing with the very dangerous mindset that the 
weakest in our society are to blame for their condition.
  Instead of taking away food stamps, we should be encouraging jobs. 
That we should be encouraging smaller assistance for those who are in 
need is not, I think, the way that this policy should go. We should be 
incentivizing companies to provide a living wage. And I think it's 
hypocritical for us to value the sanctity of life while neglecting 
policies that ensure all Americans have a better quality of life.
  Mr. Speaker, 54 percent of the households in my district receive 
SNAP. I think that it's really important that we remember the people 
that we're sent here to represent.

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