Tom Harkin: “But the bill we have before us provides for a $180 bonus payment to any person in the armed services who qualifies for…”

“But the bill we have before us provides for a $180 bonus payment to any person in the armed services who qualifies for food stamps. That is a great step. I applaud it. I support it wholeheartedly. But, again, in looking at it, I think there are some areas that maybe need to be addressed further, and that is the purpose of my amendment. For example, the $180 bonus applies to service people in the country, in the United States, but not to service people overseas. Again, having served in the military and having been stationed overseas, I can tell you a lot of times it is a lot more expensive, especially if you are stationed in Japan or places like that where it is much more costly, much more expensive than it is for the people here in the States. So what my amendment would do would apply the $180 not just to personnel in the United States but to people overseas. It just extends it to them also.”