Sister Simone Campbell Responds to House Passage of the 2018 Farm Bill

For Immediate Release: June 21, 2018
Contact: Ashley Wilson, awilson@networklobby.org, 202-601-7856
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WASHINGTON, D.C. — In response to the House passage of the 2018 Farm Bill, Sister Simone Campbell, SSS, Executive Director of NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice issued the following statement:

“Speaker Ryan and House Republicans revealed their true colors by voting to take food off the tables of our most vulnerable sisters and brothers. H.R.2 cuts the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) for millions of people and creates a complex government bureaucracy to enforce punitive and unreasonable work requirements.  It is shocking that the GOP would choose to undermine one of our most effective anti-poverty programs. This comes exactly six months after passing a tax overhaul that benefits the wealthiest in our nation.  Our faith values tell us that no one deserves to go hungry, no matter a person’s circumstance.

“When will Speaker Ryan learn that a partisan process leading to a partisan bill will never produce just legislation? The House GOP insisted on pushing their controversial bill that takes food away from Americans struggling to get by. H.R. 2 erodes the historically bipartisan Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and punishes low-income families and individuals in the process.  This is the GOP answer to wage stagnation and poverty: make it harder for people to eat.

“Fortunately, the Senate has chosen to maintain bipartisan negotiations, In the process, the committee created a balanced bill that NETWORK can support. H.R.2 is a hyper partisan bill trying to hold together the fractured Republican party. We affirm the 20 Republicans who voted against it. Now, the Senate needs to take the lead for the good of our nation.

“As Congress moves toward conference, the contrast couldn’t be starker: a harmful, partisan bill and a bipartisan bill for the common good.  We urge lawmakers to reject proposed changes to SNAP in H.R.2.“

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NETWORK, a national Catholic Social Justice lobby, which educates, organizes, and lobbies for economic and social transformation, has a more than 40-year track record of lobbying for critical federal programs that support those at the margins and prioritize the common good.