Bill Lee

I am former SNAP recipient--food stamp recipient myself, and believe you, me, I couldn't be--I wouldn't be here today had these requirements been in place.

This is very serious. And I have mentioned this before how opposed many of us are to this--really it is a cruel rule of taking food out of the mouths of hungry individuals.

We have got to find some way to have a public health emergency provision in one of these--somehow.

And do you approve those waivers or does the state----

Well, Mr. Chairman, maybe we'll look at that and see if in fact the need warrants us to drill down a little bit.

So, the need obviously now is greater, and the reimbursement rates and the level of reimbursements will probably increase.

How about a waiver--I think the provisions--well, first of all, is there a blanket waiver right now as it relates to the reduction of the price of meals and school waivers?

How do you--I mean are there waivers that you right now can, can grant with regards----

Thank you very much. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thank you, Mr. Secretary. I too apologize for being late.

If there are that many civil rights complaints and only two were found--determined wrongdoing--then something structurally within your--within USDA is wrong.

These are real lives, and civil rights is extremely important.

I can't imagine this huge cut taking place.

We can't ignore that if we really want to ensure economic equality for all in our country.

I would like to suggest that either we have a hearing on this issue or have a meeting or something to drill down

The unemployment rate for African Americans still is double that of their white counterparts.

Economic inequality disproportionately impacts women and communities of color.

I don't see any--much reference to the issue of race and gender.

These protests were sparked by the disappearance of millions of dollars of assistance provided to Haiti by Venezuela under the PetroCaribe program.

Haiti is, indeed, a country in crisis and we are long overdue for an honest assessment of the policies of the United States toward Haiti as this crisis has developed.

Once again, I just have to say my heart continues to ache for the people of Haiti.

We can't just talk about income inequality without talking about racial and income economic inequality.

Thank you for holding this hearing and for your tremendous work and leadership.

These bills also greatly reflect the mission of this select committee to put forward bold legislative ideas to help reduce greenhouse gas pollution.

I believe that we must protect God's creation. We must secure the future for future generations to come.

I think that one of the things that we have--we have seen over the last couple of years is women taking back their rights, and it is not just women. It is people. It is LGBTQ people. It is trans people. Basically, standing up and saying we…