http://www.dailykos.com/story/2015/02/09/1363364/-Republicans-seek-to-use-voter-suppression-tactics-to-keep-people-hungry?detail=email
Republicans have come up with another exciting new way to make it difficult for people to use food stamps. Rep. Matt Salmon of Arizona and Sen. David Vitter of Louisiana are pushing similar bills that would require people to produce photo identification to get their Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits.
The ID requirement is supposedly going to combat fraud—all 1.3 percent of it. But while there's not much fraud to combat, making people show ID could have a huge effect on those who should be getting the food aid. For one thing, take every story you've ever heard or witnessed in which someone gets all judgey in a grocery line when they see the person in front of them paying for food with an Electronic Benefit Transfer card and multiply that by the extra time it takes for an ID check. In fact, given how rarely grocery stores ask people paying by credit card to show identification, a person in line showing ID would pretty much have a flashing arrow over their head saying "government assistance." So count this as yet another effort to stigmatize aid recipients.
Additionally, while the Salmon and Vitter proposals involve separate identification, a USDA objection to states putting photos on EBT cards themselves highlights another problem: SNAP benefits typically go not to individuals but to households. What if people in the household have different last names and a photo ID of someone legitimately in the household and entitled to use the benefits is refused or even taken as a sign of attempted fraud?
this is not reaching out people this is control of the "let them eat cake" kind although they would snatch the cake out of your hand too. the bolder they get with their discriminatory actions the more Americans in need suffer using the stats like 1.3 percent is hardly fraud probably more someone going to the store for someone unable to go themselves, like my aide does for me if DC required a picture on my debit card i would starve or pay more for less food by store delivery which uses card info no picture and actually at the users request by phone or internet my point what's the difference they are not saying fraud online i don't receive food stamps but i know others who do and they send their aides to shop for them. republican attempt to destroy the social nets for poor, elderly, and disabled that reaching out thing is where the fraud is.
