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How nutrition could blow up the farm bill
Story Date: 3/29/2018
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Source: POLITICO'S MORNING AGRICULTURE, 3/28/18
Getting agreement on SNAP, of course, remains the real key to getting a farm bill done, but the political stakes surrounding a potential compromise are high, Helena and Catherine report in a deeper dive this morning.
SNAP as a bite of welfare reform: For conservatives, this cycle offers a rare shot at reining in SNAP, which ballooned to cover millions more families in the aftermath of the Great Recession. It's the first time in decades that a farm bill is being written with Republicans in control of both Congress and the White House. Don't look for Republicans to give up easily, despite the breakdown in talks.
"We're going to keep going at that issue," House Speaker Paul Ryan said of entitlement reform last week. "When it comes to the farm bill and other welfare programs on our workforce development program, we can get some good welfare reforms there."
Big-ticket changes to SNAP are not going to be considered in the Senate, as Senate Agriculture Chairman Pat Roberts has reacted to the rumblings from Conaway's reform push in the House with a simple: Nope. In the House, Conaway has to get Democrats on board, or else rely on the right flank of the Republican conference, which is generally hostile to both food stamps and farm subsidies.
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