PAUL: Taxpayers Shouldn't Foot the Bill for 'Twinkies, Ding Dongs, Donuts'

Americans should be trying to get healthy again, not subsidizing obesity. #48

Rand Paul doesn’t think taxpayers should be paying for junk food in an America that’s becoming less healthy and more obese.

As he told Dana Loesch in a recent interview about this subject and Big Pharma.

‘There’s No Reason the Taxpayer Should Buy Crappy Food’

Loesch asked the senator, “Now we have Make America Healthy Again, and I wanted to get your thoughts on the progress that you’ve seen, and do you ultimately think that that is going to result in any kind of accountability with Big Pharma?”

Paul replied, referencing the current Health and Human Services secretary, “I think Bobby Kennedy is doing a good job over there. I think the president trying to negotiate lower rates for taxpayer-paid pharmaceuticals is a good idea.”

Then he got to a part not enough people address, though that could be changing with RFK Jr’s role in the Trump administration.

“I think the biggest thing you could do with government money to try to have healthier people in our country is there’s no reason the taxpayer should buy crappy food,” Paul said.

He made a list, “There’s no reason the taxpayer should buy sugared soda. There’s no reason the taxpayer should buy Twinkies, Ding Dongs, donuts, chips. All of the stuff that all of us probably eat on occasion is fine, but the taxpayer should not be funding it because we have an obesity problem.”

“Most of our health problems that are curable and fixable, diabetes are fixable with weight loss,” he added.

Paul said Kennedy agrees with him on this issue.

“So we need to really be working hard at getting the taxpayer away from funding things,” he noted. “I know Kennedy is in favor of this.”

“I’ve been trying to pass it as legislation,” he added. “But shockingly, I know this will shock you, I have not found one Democrat who will agree that food stamps should be limited to healthy food and not crummy food.”

Not ONE. More Republicans really should contrast themselves with Democrats on this and they might find a lot of support.

This stance is not anything new for Sen. Paul. Here he is saying essentially the same thing in December 2024 as he has for many years.

How much are taxpayers doling out for junk food for people on public assistance?

According to RFK Jr. it’s A LOT:

Paying to Poison Then Paying to Heal

Secretary Kennedy broke this down in late August, “We spend $405 million a day on food stamps. That’s what the taxpayer is spending. 10 percent is going to sugary drinks. Another 8 percent is going to candies. So we are poisoning 60 percent of our kids who are getting food stamps.”

It’s a vicious cycle

“The poorest kids, the kids who can least afford to get sick, and we are poisoning them,” he said. “We are deeming them diabetes, and then we’re paying for it upfront with food stamps.”

“We’re paying for it again with Medicaid,” Kennedy added. “The rest of his life”

This is madness.

In August, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins approved six waivers to six states that would exempt sodas and energy drinks from being included in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Programs (SNAP).

That sounds like a good start.

It should be pursued further - much further - while we still have a HHS secretary serious about real reform and a president eager for it.