Obama reacts defensively to Gingrich's lies:On November 30, Gingrich falsely claims that people are using food stamp money to go to Hawaii.
Now we read
this:
Posted at 06:00 AM ET, 12/06/2011
Obama administration targeting food stamp fraud as program reaches record highs
By Ed O'Keefe
With more Americans relying on the program, the Obama administration on Tuesday plans to announce new steps to crack down on SNAP fraud amid estimates suggesting as much as $753 million in federal food aid is spent fraudulently each year.
Yes, there is fraud that needs to be looked into. But you don't announce a crack-down in the immediate aftermath of a prominent politician spewing nonsense about the program. Why? Because it will validate him.
posted by Quiddity at 12/06/2011 10:33:00 AM
So the winning political strategy for the new decade is contrarianism -- reflexively taking the position contrary to your political opponent and digging in your heels, even when your opponent is right in essence if not detail, there is a real problem, and polls favor your opponent's position.
It's something politicians accuse each other of doing, but here Quiddity seems to be advocating that Obama and the Democrats adopt it as a general political strategy. Not being a Democrat, I say go for it!
And yes, there is food stamp fraud, even though Gingrich got all the details wrong. It doesn't take much imagination to realize that if you have $200 on your link card, you can loan it to someone for $100 cash, or go to the store with them to run the card yourself. The administration ran the numbers and came up with $743 million in fraud.
Personally I find it unsurprising that the one form of government aid fraud the Obama administration chooses to crack down on is one that offers no opportunity for graft and kickbacks.
Great post, thanks.
