Allowing welfare recipients to purchase soda as part of the SNAP program (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) is essentially the government subsidizing obesity, diabetes, and heart disease, Rep. Keith Self (R-TX) said during an appearance on Breitbart News Daily.
Self discussed his measure that would prevent welfare recipients from using SNAP to purchase soda, which the congressman said is the number one purchased item under SNAP.
“We’re talking about the bill is actually called FIZZ-NO, because carbonated beverages, which is a source of sugar, is the number one purchased item under SNAP program, as you said, formerly called food stamps,” he began.
Subsidizing people purchasing sugary drinks, he continued, leads to “subsidizing obesity, diabetes and heart disease,” he said, explaining that it does not end there, either.
LISTEN:
Breitbart · Rep. Keith Self (R-TX) – February 26, 2025“And then on the other end, with Medicaid, then we have to subsidize health care for the very thing that we have subsidized through SNAP. So this is — this makes no sense. Government subsidizes your diabetes or your hypertension, and then they subsidize the treatment of it. So it makes no sense. We need to stop that, because SNAP, if you look at SNAP, it is the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program — nutrition,” he said, placing an emphasis on “nutrition.”
“Carbonated beverages have no nutritional value in them,” he said.
Self also said Congress is trying to support the Make America Healthy Again movement.
“This is what the new secretary is all about, is make America healthy,” he said of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. “We want to support that as well.”
In a statement introducing his Funding is Zero for Zero Nutrition Options (FIZZ-NO) Act in January, Self said, “SNAP was originally created to help the poorest Americans access nutritious food. Allowing taxpayer dollars to subsidize sugary sodas, which offer zero nutritional value and contribute to costly health conditions, is counterproductive. ”
“The FIZZ-NO Act is a commonsense solution to strengthen public health and reduce the financial burden on taxpayers,” he added.
The bill can be read here.
Breitbart News Daily airs on SiriusXM Patriot 125 from 6:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. Eastern.
