As Presidential Candidates Square Off, Children Go Hungry

Bread for the World
Monday, 14 August 2000

Will the Republican or Democratic nominees address the issue of hunger amidst plenty?

The economy is booming. Prosperity is at an all-time high. But hunger still threatens more than 12 million U.S. children. According to recently released government data, 17 percent of all U.S. children live in households that experience hunger or are threatened by hunger.

Last month, the Congressional Budget Office announced that the U.S. government is expected to take in $2.2 trillion more than it spends over the next decade. But there's little talk from either party about spending that money to tackle the most serious problems facing our nation, like hunger and poverty.

Hunger isn't an insurmountable problem. In fact, we could cut hunger in half in this country within just a couple of years simply by strengthening existing federal nutrition programs, especially food stamps.

At the recent Republican convention, presidential nominee George W. Bush stressed that no child should be left behind: "We will extend the promise of prosperity to every forgotten corner of this country: to every man and woman a chance to succeed; to every child a chance to learn; and to every family, a chance to live with dignity and hope."

Throughout the campaign, Vice President Gore has been outspoken on issues of poverty: "It would be the cruelest of ironies, if, in this time of great bounty in America, we did not solve, once and for all, the moral challenge of child hunger."

Both candidates are making promises to extend our nation's prosperity to everyone. But, to demonstrate leadership, the candidates must move beyond rhetoric. Now we need to see action back up their compassionate words.

As a first step, both candidates should announce their support for the Hunger Relief Act, a bipartisan bill that would extend food stamps to more needy families. Over 10 years, the cost of the Hunger Relief Act would be less than one half of one percent of the expected surplus. This is a concrete proposal that would benefit more than one million low-income people.

We have the resources. Do we have the will?

For more information, or to contact Bread for the World, see their website at: www.bread.org