Oh Snap: Mass. Rep. Mcgovern’s Mission To Fight Food Insecurity

1 week ago

Good Monday Morning, everyone.

With conscionable astir each societal use programme nether nan microscope these days — and taxable to draconian cuts — U.S. Rep. Jim McGovern, D-2nd District, is drafting a statement astir assistance to nan hungry.

Last week, nan cardinal Massachusetts lawmaker rolled retired legislation that would protect nan Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, arsenic nutrient stamps are formally known, from “backdoor use cuts.”

The programme helps put nutrient connected nan array for 42 cardinal families nationwide, including 1 successful 5 children, according to 1 analysis, astatine a costs of astir $119 cardinal successful 2022.

The Republican fund model for 2025 calls for $2 trillion successful mandatory spending cuts. And astir analysts judge you can’t scope that number without hitting SNAP aliases different large societal programs, Newsweek reported.

“SNAP helps make judge children, seniors, veterans and Americans pinch disabilities person capable nutrient to enactment healthy. Donald Trump and Republicans successful Congress are going aft these very humble benefits — astir $2 per repast — to salary for taxation breaks for billionaires," McGovern, nan ranking Democrat connected nan House Rules Committee, and a elder personnel of nan House Agriculture Committee, said successful a statement.

McGovern was joined connected nan measure by Democratic U.S. Reps. Shontel Brown of Ohio and Jahana Hayes of Connecticut. As of past week, it had picked up 56 cosponsors successful nan House, McGovern’s agency said.

As it’s presently written, nan authorities would barroom immoderate changes to nan look nan U.S. Agriculture Department uses to find benefits truthful that they “do not consequence successful an summation successful hunger among low-income families.”

That formula, known arsenic nan Thrifty Food Plan, represents nan costs of groceries needed to supply a healthy, cost-conscious fare for a family of four. The maximum benefits nether SNAP are updated annually based connected that formula.

The House Republican fund resolution, which passed successful February, calls for $230 cardinal successful cuts to SNAP. Congressional Republicans are chiefly targeting changes to nan Thrifty Food Plan to execute these cuts, McGovern’s agency said, citing reporting by Politico.

“It’s a typical benignant of sadistic to return nutrient retired of nan mouths of quiet group to money yet different taxation break for nan richest group successful this country,” McGovern said. “Our measure is simple: it will protect humble SNAP benefits and make judge early updates don’t make hunger worse.”

It comes astatine a difficult clip for consumers, who already are facing precocious prices and, for many, nutrient insecurity.

In 2023, an estimated 13.5% of households, aliases 1 successful 7, were nutrient insecure, up from 10.5% successful 2020, Time reported, citing USDA data.

And it’s nary concealed that worry complete nan system and market prices was a large facet for voters successful nan 2024 election.

President Donald Trump notably made market prices a centerpiece of his run and moreover stopped astatine a supermarket successful battleground Pennsylvania, where he picked up nan tab for immoderate customers.

But arsenic Trump and Republicans look for savings to salary for an estimated $4.5 trillion taxation trim package, it’s “hands disconnected SNAP,” Brown said.

The SNAP programme “is our astir effective anti-hunger instrumentality ensuring children, families and seniors get nan nutritious nutrient they request to unrecorded patient lives,” Hayes added. “Efforts to shrink nan programme will devastate our astir susceptible communities.”

Advocates welcomed nan bill.

“We want a state wherever children thrive, families person what they request and our system useful for everyone, and that imagination requires protecting and strengthening SNAP. We impulse Congress to cull proposals that would weaken SNAP and alternatively attraction connected strengthening this nutrition lifeline,” Crystal FitzSimons, nan interim president of nan Food Research & Action Center, said.

A Million Here, A Million There Dept.

A ace PAC aligned pinch Boston Mayor Michelle Wu sewage a awesome infusion of rate from an aged state arsenic she heads into nan heavy of her reelection run against challenger Josh Kraft.

The group, Bold Boston, was nan beneficiary of a $100,000 aid past period by 1199 SEIU, nan well-connected and deep-pocketed national that represents tens of thousands of wellness attraction workers statewide, according to filings. The news was first reported by Commonwealth Beacon.

The PAC, formed successful 2023, supported Boston City Council candidates during that run cycle, nan online news statement reported.

Wu, who’s been moving for weeks, officially launched her reelection complete nan weekend.

All business

Four of nan state’s starring business groups sent a connection to nan Healey management and elder legislative leaders past week, arsenic they sketched retired their priorities for nan caller legislative session.

The groups — Associated Industries of Massachusetts, nan Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce, nan Massachusetts Business Roundtable and nan Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation — besides laid retired what they judge are immoderate of nan astir important nationalist argumentation challenges facing nan state.

If you’ve been paying attraction to matters connected Beacon Hill and beyond of late, immoderate of them won’t astonishment you. They see nan state’s costs of surviving and nan costs of doing business, on pinch nan ongoing exodus of working-age adults to friendlier economical climes (Cough, New Hampshire, Florida, cough).

Leaders said they wanted to “work collaboratively” pinch Gov. Maura Healey and her administration, on pinch legislative leaders, to find solutions to each those challenges.

“By focusing connected increasing and maximizing nan state’s labour force, supporting halfway economical sectors, viewing argumentation done nan prism of costs and maintaining beardown nationalist ﬁnances, Massachusetts tin thrive successful a challenging environment,” nan business leaders wrote successful a associated letter.

“It is incumbent connected america successful nan business organization to activity collaboratively pinch each different and successful business pinch authorities to collectively build upon nan momentum of this past convention and transportation it into 2025 arsenic we proceed to reside nan state’s competitiveness. Our 4 organizations are coming together successful that tone of collaboration to connection a model for action and a roadmap for our continued activity together,” they said.

U.S. Rep. Seth Moulton, D-6th District, holds a municipality hallway for constituents astatine Masconomet High School successful Boxford, Massachusetts, connected Saturday, March 15, 2025.

Monday numbers

U.S. Sen. Cory Booker’s, D-N.J., marathon reside connected nan Senate level was a galvanizing infinitesimal for Democrats arsenic they activity to push backmost against nan Republican Trump administration’s agenda.

Booker is simply a “moral sound that America needs,” U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., told MassLive past week. “He talked astir an America that isn’t astir nan correct and left, but is alternatively astir correct and wrong.”

As our friends astatine Commonwealth Beacon reported past week, a MassINC canvass released past period shows that Massachusetts Democrats besides are successful a fighting mood.

Nearly two-thirds (62%) of Democratic and Democratic-leaning respondents to nan poll, conducted from March 17-20, want Democrats connected Capitol Hill to “mainly activity to extremity nan Republican agenda.”

A small much than a 4th (27%) want Democrats to chiefly activity pinch Republicans, nan canvass found.

At a municipality hallway successful Boxford earlier this month, U.S. Rep. Seth Moulton, D-6th District, ran into immoderate of that sentiment firsthand. The Salem lawmaker appeared inclined to agree, though he did admonish nan crowd to play nice.

“I person often, arsenic person galore Democrats, crossed nan aisle to support [the] authorities unfastened — sometimes erstwhile Republicans needed to beryllium bailed retired from their ain extremists — to do nan correct point for our country," Moulton said during nan municipality hall, which came correct aft lawmakers approved a short-term backing measurement to support nan authorities running.

“But this is simply a different time. [We] request to clasp this management accountable, because they are not listening to nan courts, and they are not deferring to Congress successful our law domiciled to power nan powerfulness of nan purse.”

[Left to right] Mass. Republican Party Finance Chair Jennifer Nassour, Republican campaigner for authorities auditor successful 2018 Helen Brady, Mass. Fiscal Alliance President Paul Craney and Act connected Mass Executive Director Scotia Hille astatine a property convention connected Wednesday, Dec. 18, 2024 extracurricular of nan enclosure of nan House of Representatives

They said it

“Governor Healey’s supplemental fund is different illustration of fiscal irresponsibility that prioritizes authorities description complete payer protection. By dramatically expanding spending and allowing energy rates to emergence owed to bad policy, this fund puts Massachusetts families and businesses astatine risk. The Legislature must cull this reckless connection and request a much responsible attack that prioritizes affordability and accountability.”

— Paul Diego Craney, executive head of nan right-leaning Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance, had plentifulness to opportunity astir the $756 cardinal supplemental budget Gov. Maura Healey submitted to lawmakers past week.

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On your calendars

State Auditor Diana DiZoglio roadworthy trips it to Western Massachusetts connected Monday for an arena focused connected making judge nan authorities pays its adjacent stock for nan zillions of acres of authorities forests, authorities parks and wildlife guidance areas that aren’t connected nan section taxation rolls.

The Methuen Democrat will coming her office’s recommendations for reforming nan state’s payment-in-lieu of taxes (PILOT) rule to make judge nan playing section stays level.

As 1 section perceiver tells us, this is simply a immense rumor for nan occidental half of nan state, which is predominantly agrarian and forested. The arena astatine Windsor Town Hall successful Windsor, Massachusetts, gets rolling astatine 1 p.m.

Local officials and authorities Sen. Paul Mark, D-Berkshire/Hampden/ Franklin/Hampshire, who represents nan region connected Beacon Hill besides are group to beryllium successful attendance.

A photograph of a classical stone guitar pinch stars and stripes

Turned up to 11

English synth-pop legends Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark (That’s OMD, for short) play a rescheduled show astatine Boston’s House of Blues connected July 7 (Tickets here).

Most U.S. listeners astir apt cognize nan set for their inescapable 1980s deed “If You Leave,” from nan soundtrack for nan Molly Ringwald-starring “Pretty successful Pink” successful 1986.

By then, nan Liverpool set had moved immoderate region from its profoundly experimental early days. For my money, though, that’s wherever its euphony was nan astir breathtaking and innovative. After a hiatus, OMD regrouped successful 2006 and mostly returned to their roots. That includes their 2023 LP “Bauhaus Staircase.” And here’s nan title track for your Monday morning.

Your Monday agelong read

As an American antheral of a definite age, I americium apparently expected to walk each my clip thinking astir nan Roman Empire.

It’s not wholly inaccurate. Though I confess I’m mostly obsessed pinch nan Second Punic War, and what mightiness person happened if nan Carthaginian wide Hannibal had decided to march connected Rome after nan decisive Battle of Cannae successful 216 BC. And ...

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Anyway, recent events besides person maine reasoning astir the Late Bronze Age Collapse, hundreds of years earlier, successful 1177 B.C., erstwhile nan civilizations astir nan eastbound Mediterranean each collapsed for illustration dominos, wrong years of each other.

They included nan ancient Egyptians, Babylonians, Minoans, Mycenaeans and Hittites. Only nan Egyptians survived nan implosion, but successful dramatically diminished form.

Historians still vigorously statement what caused this to hap — immoderate opportunity ambiance change, immoderate opportunity shifts successful migration patterns, while others constituent to immoderate benignant of cataclysmic event. Or immoderate operation of each of that.

What is existent is that, backmost then, arsenic is nan lawsuit now, each of their economies were tightly interwoven, successful an early shape of globalism. And arsenic 1 partner unraveled, nan others swiftly followed.

Sound familiar?

Anyway, George Washington University archaeology professor Eric H. Cline is 1 of nan foremost scholars of nan era. And his book, 1177 B.C.: The Year Civilization Collapsed, is an indispensable read.

As nan “Are We Rome?” crowd will show you, it’s difficult to find cleanable analogies successful ancient history. But it judge doesn’t wounded to cheque nan roadmap from clip to time.

That’s it for today. As always, tips, comments and questions tin beryllium sent to jmicek@masslive.com. If you want to cognize astir “The Pink Moon,” that’s rmancini@masslive.com. He’s sewage you sorted. Have a bully week, friends.

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