Senator Exposes Blue States Using $250 Million in SNAP Benefits to Pay for Fast-Food
It’s one thing to hear about waste in the abstract. It’s another to see the absurd details in black and white.
U.S. taxpayers are footing nearly $250 million a year in SNAP benefits spent on fast-food meals across just nine states, most of which are blue states, according to Republican Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst…
“The ‘N’ in SNAP stands for nutrition not nuggets with a side of fries,” Sen. Joni Ernst told Fox News Digital. “I wish I was McRibbing you but $250 million per year at the drive-through is no joke and a serious waste of tax dollars. I hate to be the one to say McSCUSE ME, but something needs to be done because taxpayers are not lovin’ it.”
That’s not satire from The Babylon Bee. That’s a direct quote about your government at work. An investigation by Iowa Senator Joni Ernst, a true warrior against government excess, has exposed how liberal states are exploiting a loophole in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). They are using it to funnel hundreds of millions of your tax dollars straight into the pockets of fast-food corporations. This isn’t about buying groceries for a family. It’s about bankrolling Big Macs.
The scheme is run through a little-known provision called the Restaurant Meals Program (RMP). According to Sen. Ernst’s investigation, taxpayers are getting hit with a bill for nearly $250 million a year so SNAP recipients can buy prepared meals at fast-food joints in nine states.
And the epicenter of this fiscal insanity? You guessed it: California. The Golden State is projected to burn through a staggering $475 million on this program between June 2023 and May 2025. That one state is responsible for an incredible 90% of the nation’s entire RMP spending.
The other states participating in this racket are a predictable lineup of liberal strongholds: Arizona, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New York, and Rhode Island. A real shocker, I know. With the lone exception of Virginia, these are all states run by Democrats who treat taxpayer money like it grows on trees.
It started, as these things always do, with a seemingly small, reasonable idea that politicians promised would stay contained. A 1977 loophole created the RMP to help the homeless, disabled, and elderly—people who might lack a kitchen—purchase a hot meal. For years, it was a minor, targeted program.
But give the Left an inch, and they’ll take a taxpayer-funded mile. In 2021, California blew the program wide open, authorizing over 5,800 vendors to start accepting food stamp benefits. We’re talking about McDonald’s, Domino’s Pizza, Jack in the Box—you name it. The original mission of SNAP, providing staple foods like meat and vegetables, has been utterly perverted. It is now a taxpayer-funded pipeline for processed junk food.
U.S. taxpayers are footing nearly $250 million a year in SNAP benefits spent on fast-food meals across just nine states, most of which are blue states, according to Republican Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst…
“The ‘N’ in SNAP stands for nutrition not nuggets with a side of fries,” Sen. Joni Ernst told Fox News Digital. “I wish I was McRibbing you but $250 million per year at the drive-through is no joke and a serious waste of tax dollars. I hate to be the one to say McSCUSE ME, but something needs to be done because taxpayers are not lovin’ it.”
That’s not satire from The Babylon Bee. That’s a direct quote about your government at work. An investigation by Iowa Senator Joni Ernst, a true warrior against government excess, has exposed how liberal states are exploiting a loophole in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). They are using it to funnel hundreds of millions of your tax dollars straight into the pockets of fast-food corporations. This isn’t about buying groceries for a family. It’s about bankrolling Big Macs.
The scheme is run through a little-known provision called the Restaurant Meals Program (RMP). According to Sen. Ernst’s investigation, taxpayers are getting hit with a bill for nearly $250 million a year so SNAP recipients can buy prepared meals at fast-food joints in nine states.
And the epicenter of this fiscal insanity? You guessed it: California. The Golden State is projected to burn through a staggering $475 million on this program between June 2023 and May 2025. That one state is responsible for an incredible 90% of the nation’s entire RMP spending.
The other states participating in this racket are a predictable lineup of liberal strongholds: Arizona, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New York, and Rhode Island. A real shocker, I know. With the lone exception of Virginia, these are all states run by Democrats who treat taxpayer money like it grows on trees.
It started, as these things always do, with a seemingly small, reasonable idea that politicians promised would stay contained. A 1977 loophole created the RMP to help the homeless, disabled, and elderly—people who might lack a kitchen—purchase a hot meal. For years, it was a minor, targeted program.
But give the Left an inch, and they’ll take a taxpayer-funded mile. In 2021, California blew the program wide open, authorizing over 5,800 vendors to start accepting food stamp benefits. We’re talking about McDonald’s, Domino’s Pizza, Jack in the Box—you name it. The original mission of SNAP, providing staple foods like meat and vegetables, has been utterly perverted. It is now a taxpayer-funded pipeline for processed junk food.
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