In a stunning act of hypocrisy, the North Dakota Senate approved legislation to increase the amount of money that lawmakers and other state employees receive in meal reimbursements just after they voted against hungry kids getting free lunch at school.
Late last month, North Dakota State Sen. Mike Wobbema said that hungry children are not their problem.
"I can understand kids going hungry, but is that really the problem of the school district?" he asked. "Is that the problem of the state of North Dakota? It's really the problem of parents being negligent with their kids if their kids are choosing to eat in the first place."
It's not just Wobbema. Some Republicans in the state claim that the issues are unrelated, but Democratic Senate Minority Leader Kathy Hogan disagrees.
“I thought today’s vote was very self-serving,” she said. “How can we vote for ourselves when we can’t vote for children?”
Inforum reports:
The Republican-dominated Senate in late March rejected House Bill 1491 by a single vote. The legislation, which had previously passed the House, would have dedicated $6 million over the next two school years to cover lunch costs for K-12 students with family incomes below double the federal poverty level. Children from families of four making less than $60,000 a year would have qualified.
Food for me and not for thee.
The Senate voted 26-21 on Thursday, April 6, to pass Senate Bill 2124, which would raise the meal reimbursements received by state employees during travel within North Dakota. Lawmakers attending interim legislative meetings are eligible for the payments, but they do not receive meal reimbursements during biennial sessions.
If Gov. Doug Burgum signs the bill, state employees could collect up to $45 a day to pay for breakfast, lunch and dinner. That’s a hike of nearly 29% on the current reimbursement rate of $35.
Thirteen Republican senators, including Majority Leader David Hogue and Assistant Majority Leader Jerry Klein, voted to increase meal reimbursements after voting against the free school lunch bill.
Hogue was asked why he voted for Senate Bill 2124 and against House Bill 1491.
“I don’t have a good answer for you as (to) why we do it sometimes and not others,” Hogue said.
I do. You're an irredeemably selfish assclown.
