Food stamp use reached a record high in June, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said this week, with 46.7 million people enrolled in the program for low-income families. The latest figures mean that food stamps will once again be a flash point in the presidential campaign. The number of people on food stamps rose 0.4 percent from May and was 3.3 percent higher than a year earlier. “Too many middle-class families who have fallen on hard times are still struggling,” said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. The program is “one more example of government incompetence,” said Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.), who wants cuts in the program. It now costs $71.8 billion a year.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Home Depots are the new epicenters of ICE raidsIn the Spotlight The chain has not provided many comments on the ongoing raids
-
Why does Trump keep interfering in the NYC mayoral race?Today's Big Question The president has seemingly taken an outsized interest in his hometown elections, but are his efforts to block Zohran Mamdani about political expediency or something deeper?
-
The pros and cons of banning cellphones in classroomsPros and cons The devices could be major distractions
