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Congressman Johnny Olszewski on the fight for SNAP benefits

Photo: Ben Schumin/Flickr-CreativeCommons
Photo: Ben Schumin/Flickr-CreativeCommons

Democratic opponents of the cuts Congress intends to make in SNAP -- the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program for people with low incomes, what used to be called ‘food stamps,' say it’s the biggest rollback in an anti-hunger program ever.

In Maryland, more than one-tenth of the 684-thousand people who now get SNAP benefits may lose them, and another one-fifth may see their benefits reduced. In the Free State, the average monthly SNAP benefit is about $180 —$6 dollars a day — and 40 percent of the people getting benefits are children.

Congressman and former Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olzsewski was on the House floor one evening last week leading speeches against the SNAP cuts, and he joins us to explain his opposition.

Sheilah Kast is the host of On The Record, Monday-Friday, 9:30-10:00 am.
Melissa Gerr is a Senior Producer for On the Record. She started in public media at Twin Cities Public Television in St. Paul, Minn., where she is from, and then worked as a field producer for Oregon Public Broadcasting in Portland. She made the jump to audio-lover in Baltimore as a digital media editor at Mid-Atlantic Media and Laureate Education, Inc. and as a field producer for "Out of the Blocks." Her beat is typically the off-beat with an emphasis on science, culture and things that make you say, 'Wait, what?'