Abortion will be on the ballot in 5 states this November— California, Vermont, Michigan, Montana, and Kentucky. Five states. Meanwhile, child hunger and nutrition will be on the ballot everywhere.
After years of gridlock and inaction, Congress is finally taking child nutrition seriously. Just not seriously enough so far. A pandemic-driven expansion of the school lunch program was set to expire in June, but Democratic leadership temporarily saved it in a patchwork deal that strips some of the benefits and is not authorized past the end of the current school year.
On a separate track, the White House and congressional Democrats are pushing hard for re-authorization of the Child Nutrition Act, which failed to make the cut when Congress recently postponed budget consideration until its post-election session.
Republican opposition is the problem. Forty-two Republican members of the House voted against the temporary extension of the Healthy Meals, Healthy Kids Act. Some of the GOP’s most senior House members were included in the opposition. If Republicans take control of the House after November, they will be the ones managing the next congressional agenda.
Republican objections kept the re-authorization of the entire Child Nutrition Act out of the current budget bill. If Republicans win control of either House of Congress, there’s no chance Child Nutrition legislation will make the cut post-election when Congress revisits it.
And so, needed changes to how we deal with the school lunch program—who is eligible, who pays, the type of meals served, food safety considerations—all hinge now on whether Democrats keep control of both Houses of Congress or whether Republicans once again gain the power to obstruct.
Balanced nutrition contributes to success in and out of the classroom: obesity prevention, overall student health, more attention, and focus on studies. Under the program set to expire, 10 million children receive breakfast and lunch each day. The public payback for this investment is unequivocal in student achievement and fewer health problems.
President Biden’s recently concluded White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health documented problems and pointed the way to solutions. Public, non-profit, health industry, and private enterprises participated in the conference. The result was $8 billion in private and public sector commitments and renewed dedication to improving the nation’s health. The only significant organizational presence missing from the conference was Republican leadership, many of whom derided it as a political sideshow.
There’s a stark message here, and you seldom see it discussed in the tens of millions of dollars spent on political campaigns. Child hunger and nutrition are on the ballot, and only the Democratic Party’s candidates are taking it seriously.