From the Department of Republican Dress-Up comes Roger Williams, the "Donkey Whisperer."
Really.
Former Texas Secretary of State Roger Williams is running for Congress on a staunchly anti-Obama, anti-government platform. He recently came out with a new video ad called “The Donkey Whisperer” that’s raising a lot of eyebrows for conflating Democrats with welfare recipients and comparing them to donkeys.
In the video, Williams is interacting with donkeys and chastises them with words like, “All these guys want is more shelter, more feed. [...] You want a handout.” At one point Williams says, “They keep thinking that Obama is going to take care of them, Obama is going to feed them.” “These donkeys don’t live in the United States of France,” he exclaims, “they live in the United States of America!”
Aside from the obvious, here is the problem with Williams' argument.
Only 27 out of every 100 families who need Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) are actually on it. A sharp decline from the time it was enacted under the Clinton Administration.
Furthermore, the number of people on TANF (welfare) has barely budged since the 2008 financial crisis and since President Obama took office despite the spike in unemployment.
Even the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) has failed to keep up with trends in unemployment.
The idea that there is an epidemic of welfare in this country, an epidemic facilitated by the Obama Administration, is popular among conservatives, but the facts simply don't support it.