Last updated on September 25th, 2023 at 08:47 pm
With Republicans divided on the Farm Bill, Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi held the House Democrats together and the result was a humiliating defeat for Trump and Ryan backed Farm Bill.
The final vote on the bill was 198-213. All the Democrats voted against the legislation as did 30 conservative Republicans who opposed the level of spending in the bill and were trying to attach controversial immigration amendments that were opposed by moderate Republicans. Democrats had already walked away from the bill because it imposed strict work requirements to the SNAP (food stamp) program, even though the vast majority of those who receive food assistance are children, the elderly, or disabled. The Republican work requirement would have thrown one million people off of the program, as the bill itself was panned for being a slash to a program for the needy disguised as a Farm Bill.
Trump proved his cluelessness by announcing his support for the bill the night before it was defeated in the House:
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Tomorrow, the House will vote on a strong Farm Bill, which includes work requirements. We must support our Nation’s great farmers!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 17, 2018
The Farm Bill flop shows that Ryan can’t hold the Republicans together. Trump is completely useless and has no idea what is going on in Congress, and that Nancy Pelosi is the best leader of them all. Democrats who are facing elections in swing districts could have been pressured by Republicans on this bill. Democrats could have splintered if Republicans would have made a few changes to the SNAP part of the bill, but it all didn’t matter, because had the Democrats together for months in opposition to this legislation.
If Democrats take back the House and Pelosi is the next speaker, Trump will have no idea what hit him, as the most incompetent president in history will get buzzsawed by a speaker who knows exactly how to get things done.
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Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
