Thread: Porterhouse steak and lobster on food stamps!

Porterhouse steak and lobster on food stamps!

Shocking receipt shows welfare recipient dining like king

Posted: June 06, 2011
9:52 pm Eastern
By Drew Zahn
© 2011 WND



A receipt allegedly found in the parking lot of a grocery store – and confirmed genuine by store managers – reveals a shocking level of luxury purchases made with state-provided food stamp funds.

The receipt from Angeli's County Market in Menominee, Mich., shows the customer used food stamps to purchase $141.78 worth of Diet Mountain Dew soda, lobster and porterhouse steaks.

The general manager of Angeli Foods, Mike Jankovich, acknowledged reluctantly to columnist John Schneider of Michigan's Lansing State Journal that the receipt was real.

"I've been hearing from lots of people about this," Jankovich told Schneider. "They're mostly people who don't understand how this can happen."

Jankovich insisted, however, that the purchase is technically legal under Michigan's Bridge Card food stamps program and that his staff had no right to refuse the sale, even if buying live lobster and expensive steaks might seem a wasteful use of welfare funds.

Asked if the receipt surprised him, Jankovich said, "Yeah, it's usually not this blatant."

Schneider also reports a discussion with a Michigan Department of Human Services spokesperson, who told the columnist the state was aware of the receipt and is conducting an investigation.

"While federal guidelines allow for food assistance to be used to buy those items, these purchases go against the intent of the program, which is to provide help to those who are truly needy," DHS spokeswoman Gisgie Gendreau said in a statement. "The department is currently reviewing all of our policies to ensure that we continue to help those who need assistance, but not those who are trying to game the system."

Gendreau continued, "We encourage anyone who suspects fraud or abuse of the system to report it by calling (800)222-8558 or on our website at www.michigan.gov/dhs."

Well hey! Lottery winners qualify for food stamps. God knows who else. Does anybody expect them to buy Spam? If you suspect fraud in your food stamp program don't call the state government promotion office, tell Congress to end this thing.

EDIT: We saved $8.00.

You see this all the time.When my wife and i go to the grocery we buy what we can afford,not the best stuff on the shelf but not the least eather.Then you go up to check out and there will be someone there with 2 carts of food steak,not chop but t bone or prime rib, lobster, beer all kinds of candy and other things that we dont get and pull out food stamps 6 to 7 hundred dallors worth and they dont look like their hurting to bad then you go out and their loading it into brand new suv,makes you think why do i work so hard.I know why AMERICAN PRIDE wasnt raised that way you worked and earn what you get.Now days its all about what can i get for free the newer generation havent learned growing up to work hard and live with in their means.Im like the Aarron Tippon song I GOT IT HONEST.