People who receive food stamps shouldn't be allowed to use them on junk food, right? That's what Republican say.
Republicans say you shouldn't be able to use them on soda and some have even proposed legislation that would block recipients from using them on sandwiches among other things. There's no shortage of conservative politicians who believe the government should micromanage which foods recipients can and cannot eat.
The Trump regime is apparently not among them, however, as a new proposal calls for counting Cheez Whiz as a "staple food" so that food stamps could be used in more places.
The regulatory change addresses a requirement that stores carry a minimum number of varieties of four types of staple foods -- meat, dairy, grains and fruits and vegetables -- to be authorized to accept SNAP benefits. The proposed rule wouldn’t alter what items recipients can purchase with their benefits. [...]
The Federal Register notice cites “canned spray cheese sauce” as an example of a dairy staple. It would count “beef jerky” as a staple in the category of meat, poultry or fish. Lemon juice and “jarred pimiento-stuffed olives” would be counted as fruit and vegetables.
If Cheeze Whiz, beef jerky, and stuffed olives among other things are counted as "staple foods," then suddenly liquor stores can begin accepting food stamps.
Now, I'm not necessarily going to say you shouldn't be able to buy such items at a liquor store (or elsewhere) using food stamps because I am not in the business of telling people what to do, but I will say it certainly flies in the face of Republican orthodoxy.
The next time some conservative politician or someone you know tells a folktale about someone buying party snacks at the corner liquor store using food stamps, remember that Trump made it happen.