{"id":2406028,"date":"2025-02-24T13:26:02","date_gmt":"2025-02-24T18:26:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/gop-senators-tackle-food-stamp-benefits-for-desserts-sodas\/"},"modified":"2025-02-24T13:30:57","modified_gmt":"2025-02-24T18:30:57","slug":"gop-senators-tackle-food-stamp-benefits-for-desserts-sodas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/gop-senators-tackle-food-stamp-benefits-for-desserts-sodas\/","title":{"rendered":"GOP Senators Tackle Food Stamp Benefits For Desserts, Sodas"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">18<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fgop-senators-tackle-food-stamp-benefits-for-desserts-sodas%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2406028&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>A pair of Republican senators,\u200d Mike Lee and Katie\u2063 Britt, have\u2063 introduced the \u200bHealthy SNAP\u200b Act aimed at \u200creforming the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)\u200b by prohibiting the\u2063 purchase of junk \u200dfood, such as \u2062candy and soda, with food stamps. They argue that current \u200cspending\u200d patterns, where \u200ca significant portion of SNAP benefits goes to unhealthy foods, \u200ccontribute to chronic health issues\u200b and ultimately cost taxpayers more in \u2064healthcare due to sugar-related diseases. With approximately 42 million beneficiaries,\u2064 Lee and Britt stress the importance of\u2063 promoting healthier dietary choices and reducing taxpayer burdens associated with poor nutritional purchases.<\/p>\n<p>Additionally, Republican \u2064Rep. Josh Brecheen \u2064has introduced similar legislation in the House,\u200d emphasizing that taxpayers should not\u2063 foot the bill for junk food while also dealing with health\u2063 consequences.This initiative is part of a broader Republican effort to address \u2063America\u2019s health crisis initiated by Health and Human \u2063Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Following this momentum, Republican\u2063 lawmakers have formed &#8220;make America Healthy\u2062 Again&#8221; caucuses in both chambers of Congress.<\/p>\n<p>The push for reform also includes state-level advocacy, as seen with \u2062Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders, who has called for changes to SNAP policies to combat obesity and related\u2062 health conditions. She cited research suggesting that banning sugary drinks from the program\u200c could prevent significant health \u2063issues in children and adults. these \u2064legislative efforts \u200dreflect\u200b a \u2062growing\u200d consensus within the republican Party\u2064 to\u2063 address nutrition issues in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/rep-grothman-pushing-bill-to-exclude-illegal-immigrants-from-federal-assistance-program\/\" title=\"Rep. Grothman pushing bill to exclude illegal immigrants from federal assistance ...\">federal assistance programs<\/a>.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>A pair of Republican senators are taking aim at taxpayer subsidies for <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\">hyper-addictive junk food delivered<\/a> to the poor under Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits.<\/p>\n<p>Last week, Republican Sen. Mike Lee of Utah and Sen. Katie Britt of Alabama introduced the Healthy SNAP Act, which would reform federal food stamps to prohibit items with virtually zero nutritional value, such as candy and soda.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;The fastest way to Make America Healthy Again is to encourage balanced diets and stop subsidizing unhealthy food choices,&rdquo; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.britt.senate.gov\/news\/press-releases\/u-s-senators-katie-britt-mike-lee-introduce-healthy-snap-act-fight-to-stop-tax-dollars-from-subsidizing-junk-food\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">said<\/a> Lee. &ldquo;The Healthy SNAP Act is a solid step forward in building a society where all families can &hellip; enjoy strength, health, and good nutrition.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>According to a recent <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/02\/05\/watchdog-report-federal-funding-of-the-desserts-and-sodas-driving-americas-obesity-epidemic-needs-to-end-now\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">report<\/a> from the Foundation for Government Accountability (FGA), the roughly 42 million beneficiaries of federal food stamp dollars spend the lion&rsquo;s share on soda, snacks, candy, and ice cream instead of eggs, fruit, and vegetables. The federal government spent about $<a href=\"https:\/\/www.ers.usda.gov\/topics\/food-nutrition-assistance\/supplemental-nutrition-assistance-program-snap\/key-statistics-and-research#:~:text=Federal%20SNAP%20spending%20totaled%20%24112.8,%24211.93%20per%20participant%20per%20month.&amp;text=2100%2C%20144%20dpi)-,Download%20chart%20data%20in%20Excel%20format.,FY%202023%20was%2012.6%20percent.\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">113 billion<\/a> on the SNAP program in the fiscal year 2023, with billions going to foods paid for in the grocery store &mdash; and then in the hospital rooms where patients suffer from myriad sugar-driven chronic diseases.<\/p>\n<p>In January, Republican Rep. Josh Brecheen of Oklahoma <a href=\"https:\/\/brecheen.house.gov\/news\/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=1372\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">introduced<\/a> companion legislation in the House after previous efforts to reform the food stamp program failed when Democrats were in power.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;If someone wants to buy junk food on their own dime, that&rsquo;s up to them,&rdquo; Brecheen said. &ldquo;But what we&rsquo;re saying is, don&rsquo;t ask the taxpayer to pay for it and then also expect the taxpayer to pick up the tab for the resulting health consequences.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>But while campaigns to meaningfully reform the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/biden-administration-quietly-removes-law-that-prioritized-immigrants-who-were-less-likely-to-need-welfare\/\" title=\"Biden Administration Quietly Removes Law That Prioritized Immigrants Who Were Less Likely To Need Welfare\">nutrition assistance program<\/a> to provide substantive nutrition have repeatedly proved <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/snap-cuts-candy-soda-food-stamps-b6351b86a17b281b67480fe2d24b54f4\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">unsuccessful<\/a>, Republicans are now operating with a new mandate to improve the nation&rsquo;s health. The secretary for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Robert F. Kennedy Jr., <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wsj.com\/opinion\/trump-can-make-america-healthy-again-rfk-jr-reforms-chronic-disease-crisis-a9b4b8c0\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">outlined<\/a> a platform for the new administration in The Wall Street Journal weeks after he dropped out of the White House race last summer and endorsed President Donald Trump. In order to &ldquo;make America healthy again,&rdquo; Kennedy argued that a Trump administration would need to &ldquo;stop allowing beneficiaries of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program to use their food stamps to buy soda or processed foods.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Nine percent of all SNAP funding goes to sweetened drinks, according to 2011 data,&rdquo; Kennedy wrote. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s nonsensical for U.S. taxpayers to spend tens of billions of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/5-things-rfk-can-do-to-make-america-healthy-again\/\" title=\"5 Things RFK Can Do To ... Again\">dollars subsidizing junk<\/a> that harms the health of low-income Americans.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Though the Senate confirmed Kennedy to lead HHS and not the agency where the SNAP program is managed (the Department of Agriculture), the momentum to reinvigorate the nation&rsquo;s health has spread throughout the Republican Party, with GOP lawmakers on Capitol Hill even forming &ldquo;MAHA&rdquo; caucuses in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.marshall.senate.gov\/newsroom\/press-releases\/senator-marshall-announces-make-america-healthy-again-caucus\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">both<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/buchanan.house.gov\/2024\/12\/buchanan-joyce-and-smucker-launch-make-america-health-again-caucus\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">chambers<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;The state of chronic disease in America is limiting our potential and preventing our kids from achieving their own American Dream. Unhealthy SNAP-eligible foods undoubtedly perpetuate this health crisis &mdash; and on the taxpayer dime,&rdquo; Britt said upon introducing her legislation last week. &ldquo;The Healthy SNAP Act is a meaningful step forward to help Make America Healthy Again. I will continue to work with HHS Secretary Kennedy, Agriculture Secretary Rollins, and the rest of President Trump&rsquo;s team to accomplish this.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>While lawmakers work to reform SNAP benefits at the federal level, at least one of the states  (which currently <a href=\"https:\/\/www.usda.gov\/sites\/default\/files\/documents\/snap_fact_sheet.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">determine<\/a>&nbsp;eligibility and benefits at the local level) has already begun to call for change. In December, Arkansas Republican Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders wrote a letter to Trump&rsquo;s nominees for HHS and USDA encouraging reform.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Given the relationship between junk food and poor health, our federal food assistance policies are fueling obesity, diabetes, heart disease, hypertension, and a wide range of chronic health conditions across America,&rdquo; Sanders <a href=\"https:\/\/governor.arkansas.gov\/news_post\/governor-sanders-calls-for-reforms-to-the-snap-program\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">wrote<\/a>. The governor cited data from Trump&rsquo;s nominee to run the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, &ldquo;and his Stanford colleagues,&rdquo; who &ldquo;estimated that prohibiting sugary drinks and soda from SNAP would prevent obesity in 141,000 kids and Type 2 diabetes in 240,000 adults.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<hr>\n<p>      Tristan Justice is a national correspondent for The Federalist and the co-author of &#8220;Fat and Unhappy: How &#8216;Body Positivity&#8217; Is Killing Us (and How to Save Yourself).&#8221; He has also written for The Washington Examiner and The Daily Signal. His work has also been featured in Real Clear Politics and Fox News. Tristan graduated from George Washington University where he majored in political science and minored in journalism. Follow him on Twitter at @JusticeTristan or contact him at Tristan@thefederalist.com. Sign up for Tristan&#8217;s email newsletter <a href=\"https:\/\/socialjusticeredux.substack.com\/about\">here<\/a>. Buy &#8220;Fat and Unhappy&#8221; <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/sz7EDAJI1c\">here<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Republican senators target SNAP subsidies for junk food<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":494,"featured_media":2406029,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Candy-e1740418880842.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[50981,50980,6203,3709],"class_list":["post-2406028","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-desserts","tag-food-stamp-benefits","tag-gop","tag-senators"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Candy-e1740418880842.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2406028","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/494"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2406028"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2406028\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2406032,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2406028\/revisions\/2406032"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2406029"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2406028"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2406028"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2406028"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}