The Republican-controlled House of Representatives voted on Thursday evening to cut $39 billion from the country's food stamp assistance program, news reports said.
The 217-210 vote was largely cast along party lines as all House Democrats voted against it, as did some moderate Republicans, arguing that the bill attacks the most vulnerable in the country, including the poor, youth and the disadvantaged.
"It's a sad day in the people's House when the leadership brings to the floor one of the most heartless bills I have ever seen. It's terrible policy trapped in a terrible process," Massachusetts Representative James McGovern said.
More than 47 million are currently on food stamps and proponents of the bill contend that the program's cost has more than doubled during country's recession. In their eyes, cuts are needed in order for a sensible budget to be implemented.
Opponents of the bill, however, insist the the cuts to the program will hurt those who are are the most vulnerable.
New York Republican Michael Grimm, said that he feels "the cuts are too drastic and too draconian. Those that really need the program will suffer."
New York Representative Peter King, a Republican, also agreed:
"I just think on balance it's not a good bill. Against the whole backdrop of a government shutdown, I just think it's too much," King said.
It is unlikely that the bill will be passed in the Senate.
"Maybe I'm just hoping for divine intervention, but I really do believe that there are enough Republicans that will not identify themselves with such a brutal cut in feeding the American people," House Minority Leader Democrat Nancy Pelosi said at a news conference.
Under Eric Cantor's direction, the bill is expected to cut $39 billion from the food stamp program over the next 10 years, "requiring adults between 18 and 50 without minor children to find a job or to enroll in a work training program in order to receive benefits," The New York Times reported.
The bill's supporters are not "trying to take food from the mouths of babies," like how some have admonished them for doing, but rather are seeking to balance a budget they feel has gone wildly out of control.
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