Americans have been through many seasons of strife, from the Great Depression to the pandemic. Americans are resilient and determined, facing seemingly insurmountable odds and overcoming them repeatedly. But at no time in recent history has America faced a threat like President Joe Biden. Americans are no longer thriving.
In fact, an increasing number of them are hungry.
It’s a problem that has always existed in America, but now, under Biden’s leadership, it has reached truly alarming proportions. According to the US Department of Agriculture, 12.8% of Americans are facing a third-world problem –food insecurity and hunger.
Per the data, 17 million Americans are struggling to put food on their tables.
When Trump took office in 2016, he inherited a shameful secret from former President Barack Obama. By the end of the Obama administration, 12.3% of Americans faced food insecurity. Under Trump’s leadership, the number dropped year over year, sliding down to 11.1% in 2018. in 2019 and 2020, under the Donald Trump presidency, 10.5% of Americans faced struggles with hunger.
Food insecurity can be caused by many things, like limited access to food because of money or, as has happened in many Democratic cities nationwide, when food suppliers cut their losses and pull out, leaving “food deserts” among the most vulnerable populations.
Food insecurity can also be characterized by uncertainty about future access to food. This uncertainty may arise from economic instability, natural disasters, conflicts, or other factors that disrupt food supply chains. When individuals or households do not have enough food to sustain themselves, it results in hunger, skipped meals, or rationing food.
Food insecurity can affect people of all ages and backgrounds but is particularly prevalent among low-income households and marginalized communities. The hunger problem in the United States is worse in households with children, with 17.3% feeling the pinch of food insecurity. Even more alarming, 16.7% of households with children under six feel the impact. Single moms feel the sting, with 33.1% struggling to feed their kids. The issue is even more dramatic with single dads, 21.2% of whom report struggling to feed their kids.
In late February, the Biden administration unveiled a $1.7 billion plan to support efforts to eradicate hunger throughout the United States by 2030. But it’s like filling a bucket with a hole in the bottom – it’s impossible under the current leadership.
Thomas Gift, the founding director of the Centre on U.S. Politics at University College London, emphasized that Biden’s success in addressing food insecurity hinges on overcoming the broader challenge of inflation.
For millions of Americans, programs like SNAP are helpful. SNAP, for instance, helps tens of millions of households secure food. Additionally, the Special Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program for Women, Infants, and Children serves over 6.6 million pregnant women, new mothers, infants, and young children up to the age of five, providing them with nutritious foods, nutrition education, and enhancing their access to healthcare.
However, many others do not qualify for governmental aid despite their struggles to make ends meet. This is the forgotten segment of Americans who work two or three jobs, yet still can’t afford to buy food.
It’s a startling revelation. America, the land of opportunity, has the highest rate of hunger than any other G7 (Group of Seven) country. A recent Gallup poll revealed that one out of four Americans faced times over the past year when they didn’t have enough money to buy food.
Benedict Vigers, a global analytics consultant at Gallup, observed that food insecurity reached its highest point in the U.S. in 2023. He explained, “This figure comes amid a backdrop of recent food price inflation in the U.S., which increased sharply in 2022 and remained high last year.”
For a while, Americans found relief through special programs created during the pandemic. The pandemic is over now, and so are these programs. Many have lapsed, leaving Americans stranded amid persistently soaring prices at the checkout counter.
It’s an impossible choice – pay rent and keep the electricity on or buy food. For many in the United States, it’s tough to do both.
And in the eyes of the hungry, the blame is laid squarely on Biden. “Food insecurity is a symptom of economic policies and practices that keep millions of individuals in the U.S. from accessing the food they need,” Food Security & Wellbeing Research & Insights for Feeding America’s Emily England noted.
The fact that millions of Americans are going hungry while the Biden administration supports illegal immigrants with free food and other assistance should be a wake-up call for the nation.
