WASHINGTON, D.C. -- U.S. Rep. James R. Langevin and several of his Democratic colleagues have announced they will limit their food budgets to $4.50 a day, the amount a person receives from the food stamp program, to protest cuts in nutrition assistance proposed in the Republican version of the Farm Bill, which is up for reauthorization.
"Every member of Congress should know what it's like to live on $4.50 per day, to know the pain of going to bed hungry, and to understand the full gravity of the decisions we make," Langevin said. "When you take food off of the plates of hungry children, you have a moral obligation to understand the consequences." He plans to take the challenge Tuesday.
The House version of the bill would cut the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) by $20 billion over 10 years. This is in addition to sequestration reductions.