by DFA Staff [courtesy of Blog for America]

John McCain and the Republicans want for more years of Bush economic policies.  This, despite the fact they have been clearly detrimental to the everyday realities of working men and women.  The New York Times reports on another sign that shows just how bad things have become:

Driven by a painful mix of layoffs and rising food and fuel prices, the number of Americans receiving food stamps is projected to reach 28 million in the coming year, the highest level since the aid program began in the 1960s.

Danny
Communications Director

by DFA Staff [courtesy of Blog for America]

The Columbus Dispatch reports on the record number of people using food stamps in Ohio:

Nearly one in 10 Ohioans now receives food stamps, the highest number in the state's history.

Caseloads have almost doubled just since 2001, with 1.1 million residents now collecting benefits, according to the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services.

Low wages, unemployment and the rising cost of groceries, gasoline and other necessities are to blame for financial hardships facing many Ohio families.

President Bush's time in office has been a disaster for the economy and John McCain wants to bring us four more years of the same failed policies.

Danny
Communications Director

by DFA Staff [courtesy of Blog for America]

The Congressional Progressive Caucus released an alternative federal budget.  Check out the full article from the Contra Costa Times:

Congressional Progressive Caucus co-chairwoman Barbara Lee, D-Oakland, today rolled out the CPC’s alternative budget, which would cut defense spending; halve U.S. poverty in a decade; and include a second economic stimulus package containing many of the provisions — more spending on public works, food stamps, unemployment insurance and Medicaid assistance to states — pared by Republican demand from the first package last month. 

Danny
Communications Director

[courtesy of The California Majority Report]

President Bush and Congressional leaders, including Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Rep. John Boehner, have come to a tentative agreement on the size and nature of the economic stimulus package which will soon be voted on in the House and Senate. The package would consist of $300 to $1,200 stipends, or tax rebates, paid to each family, and tax incentives to businesses to spur investment. However, it would not include an extension of unemployment benefits or food stamps, two measures widely supported by Democrats in the House and the Senate.

A new LA Times poll shows that Hillary Clinton is still leading among Democrats in California, although Barack Obama has seen a significant jump in his support since early last December, reports the LA Times. Clinton is polling at 42%, while Obama is polling 33%, up from 21% last year, and John Edwards is polling at 11%. Among Republicans, the top votes are split among McCain, Romney, and Huckabee.

[courtesy of California Progress Report]

By Assemblymember Mark Leno

Most of us will never know the desperation parents must feel when trying to feed their family nutritious foods using food stamps. But for two million Californians on food stamps, and for the two million Californians who are financially eligible for food stamps but don’t receive them, that desperation is an every day reality.

On Tuesday, June 5th, National Hunger Awareness Day, the California State Assembly will vote on AB 1382, which I am authoring this year, that will help families access food stamps and recover hundreds of millions in lost federal dollars.

Additionally, in an effort to increase awareness about hunger in California and get first-hand experience of the many challenges those who live on food stamps face everyday, I am taking the California Association of Food Banks up on their “Food Stamp Challenge.” This week, I am living on the national average food stamp budget of $21 for the week. That works out to $3 per day or $1 per meal.

The Food Stamp Program helps feed more than 2 million low-income Californians, two-thirds of whom are children who need nutritious foods to fuel their growing bodies. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which is responsible for administering the Food Stamp Program, the nationwide average monthly benefit is $94.05.

by Mark Leno [courtesy of Calitics - Front Page]

Today I began the Food Stamp Challenge, living off the national average food stamp budget?$21 a week. That breaks down to $3 a day, or $1 per meal.

It?s very hard to imagine how so many eat on so little money. This is exactly why I decided to take on the challenge. Two million people in California are on food stamps, two-thirds of which are children who need nutritious foods to fuel their growing bodies. It?s my hope that this effort makes just a few people think about the difficult choices that so many in our country and our state deal with every day when trying to stretch their food stamp dollar to feed their families.

[courtesy of The California Majority Report]

The California Hunger Action Coaltion, an organization of local community organizations, non-profits, food banks, and low-income advocates, staged a rally and lobbying effort at the State Capitol yesterday. Some dressed in pea pod and kiwi costumes, the group encouraged Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger to try and live off of food stamps for a week (approximately $4 a day) to see how the state's most impoverished residents live. "Poverty forces painful choices for too many California families and results in unnecessary hunger," former food stamps recipient Veronica Doleman said. "I ask the Governor to join us in recognizing the hardships these families face by trying to walk a mile in their shoes and survive on a food stamps diet for a week."

The CHAC's legislative priorities for 2007 are:

1. Increase Food Stamp participation to improve the nutrition of low-income Californians.
2. Support, fund and set measurable goals for state programs to end poverty.
3. Help children learn by improving the quality of school meal programs.
4. Fund programs and partnerships to increase healthy food access for low-income Californians.

See here for bills backed by the Coalition.