Iowa will not participate this summer in a federal program that gives $40 per month to each child in a low-income family to help with food costs while school is out, state officials have announced.
The state has notified the U.S. Department of Agriculture that it will not participate in the 2024 Summer Electronic Benefits Transfer for Children — or Summer EBT — program, the state’s Department of Health and Human Services and Department of Education said in a Friday news release.
“Federal COVID-era cash benefit programs are not sustainable and don’t provide long-term solutions for the issues impacting children and families. An EBT card does nothing to promote nutrition at a time when childhood obesity has become an epidemic,” Iowa Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds said in the news release.
She says it costs $2.2 million to feed them kids, with the federal government covering the other $2.2 million.
Let’s set aside that Iowa has an FY24 spending budget of $8.5 billion, out of which $2.2 million is basically nothing…
Rather, let’s make this a 🅲🆄🅻🆃🆄🆁🅴 🆆🅰🆁 🅸🆂🆂🆄🅴! Parental rights, right? That thing where parents can uncritically direct “the care, custody, and control of their minor children.” It sanctifies the views of parents, elevating them over government intrusion. If a federal program provides $40 a month to each child in a low-income family to help with food costs via an EBT card, then, presumably, those parents are making the best choices for their children.
Right?
Not so! says Kim Reynolds. Low-income families are too stupid, she implies, not to give their kids nutritious foods when childhood obesity has become an epidemic. By not participating the federal program then, Reynolds is ostensibly protecting children. But really, her non-participation undermines sanctified parental choices in Iowa to provide for their kids.
And who is she to supersede parental rights? A Republican governor.
Just tell them if more poor kids survive until adulthood there’s more cheap workforce around.
The kids generally survive anyway, just with stunted cognitive growth…which helps maintain a cheap underclass workforce.
And full prison system.
Feed a kid instant ramen for all their meals -> iron deficiency -> behavioral problems. Believe a poor kid like this was featured in A Place at the Table (2012), or a similar documentary. An example who opened my eyes to the fact that… well, it’s not bad to consider thinking kindly, even when it seems like an adult just sucks.
