Yikes! Why is Republican Speaker of the House John Boehner serving President Barack Obama a burger made of rotten meat? To find out, watch this cute yet disturbing video:
While this is merely a one-minute cartoon, the facts behind the matter are indeed quiet serious. Why? Because the recently passed House GOP budget bill calls for $61 billion in spending cuts for agricultural inspections. These cuts could increase outbreaks of food-borne illnesses, which are already prevalent. Here are the facts, via MotherJones.com:
- $88 million slashed from meat and poultry inspection
- 18% decrease in operations for the agency that inspects meat and poultry
- These cuts would cost the industry $11 billion in revenue
- $241 million cut from the food-safety budget of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration
- 10,000 fewer inspections of imported food (less than 1% of which is checked in the first place)
- One out of every six Americans gets sick each year from food-borne illnesses
- 28,000 people hospitalized and 3,000 die every year from food-borne illnesses
Despite these facts, Republicans insist on cutting federal inspectors. Rep. Jack Kingston (R-GA), the leader behind the defunding for federal food-safety efforts, claims that America’s food is “99.99 percent safe.”
Originally submitted by volunteer editor Brandon W. Found on Food and Water Watch’s YouTube Channel.
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