In states led by Democrats, the truly needy are being used as political pawns in a leftist game.
W hat are blue states trying to hide?
That’s the question in a little-known yet immensely important federal lawsuit that started arguments recently. The lawsuit was filed by 21 state attorneys general, all of them Democrats, and they’ve sued the Trump administration for asking states to hand over information about their food stamp programs. The federal government — which pays for food stamps — is trying to discover the true extent of waste, fraud, and abuse in welfare.
But instead of protecting taxpayers, Democrats are trying to cover up the truth by stopping this policy in its tracks. A liberal federal judge agreed with them on September 18, temporarily blocking the administration from getting state data despite the president’s clear legal authority to police a federal program. It’s clear what Democrats are trying to do. From California to Kansas, from Michigan to Massachusetts, Democrats are defrauding taxpayers to advance their radical agenda of welfare for all.
Democrats’ refusal to side with taxpayers — and oppose fraud — speaks volumes about their priorities. The federal government has already found that more than one in ten dollars in the food stamp program — more than $10 billion in total — goes to improper payments. In California, 11 percent of food stamp spending is wasteful; in New York, it’s 14 percent. But the Trump administration strongly suspects that the real number is much higher, and in a recent analysis, it found that taxpayers are likely forking over a further half a billion to people enrolled in multiple states.
To right this wrong, the Trump administration asked states in May to help it get to the bottom of this mess. Most states quickly complied, which makes sense. While states technically administer food stamps, the program’s benefits are currently 100 percent funded by the federal government. So, when D.C. asks for data on the program, states have a duty to play ball. But Democrats immediately fell over themselves to refuse.
Naturally, Democrats say the Trump administration is pushing a power grab, but that’s false. The Department of Agriculture — which is in charge of food stamps — has always been entitled to this information even though it hasn’t asked for it. The bipartisan 2018 Farm Bill further required states to share enrollment data to crack down on duplicate enrollment. And states also already share much of the data with the federal government through regular audits.
Yet instead of complying with a commonsense policy, Democrats are deflecting attention from the foolish and pro-fraud policies they’ve embraced for years — policies that have let millions of ineligible people get on this welfare program.
The blue state love affair with welfare fraud runs deep, reflecting the left’s belief that more people should be on the government dole. In particular, blue states have done a terrible job comparing their food stamp rolls to death records, moving records, and other eligibility checks. These are basic measures of good government — and they’re easy, too, since states already sit on a treasure trove of data. But blue states aren’t doing even the easiest due diligence to protect taxpayers. That’s what you’d expect from a party that wants welfare for all.
Will Democrats get away with their pathetic attempt to defraud taxpayers in pursuit of even more handouts for even more people? The federal courts should reject their attempt to hide the truth. And in Kansas, Republican Attorney General Kris Kobach is suing his own Democratic governor for her refusal to work with the Trump administration. Along with Kansas Senate President Ty Masterson and House Speaker Dan Hawkins, Kobach has warned that if Kansas doesn’t do what’s right, it risks losing federal funding for truly needy people.
That’s what this issue ultimately comes down to: ensuring that taxpayers are supporting only the vulnerable Americans who actually need help. Yet whether it’s Kansas, California, or any other state led by Democrats, the truly needy are being used as political pawns in a leftist game. Democrats aren’t just hiding the waste, fraud, and abuse — they’ve let it run rampant. They’re hiding the fact that they ultimately want welfare for all.