If you’ve seen “Las Palmas” you know how it feels to be advocating for anti-hunger policies and funding right now. If you haven’t seen it, maybe give it a miss on Netflix. It’s a Norwegian drama that follows a family vacationing in the Canary Islands. As their own family crisis reveals itself to the viewers bit by bit and that tension mounts, we realize that there is going to be a volcanic eruption with the potential to trigger a tsunami which will wipe out everyone on Tenerife. Researchers working on the island fear the eruption is imminent, but predictably the authorities they warn refuse to act and give people sufficient time to save their own lives by evacuating. It’s terrifying and the image of the gigantic tsunami bearing down on the tiny island filled with people with no way off or out stayed has stayed with me since Christmas when I watched it.

At the time, I’d just been let go from the Senate Democrats - a partisan role as Communications Director. The newly elected leaders of the caucus wanted to hire much younger and campaign connected people (with little to no communications or policy, or strategy or management experience). I have a lot to say on the Dems strategy and why they’re losing, but that’s for another day. Now I’m the Advocacy Manager for an organization whose mission is to end childhood food insecurity through maximizing federal nutrition programs, such as SNAP and school meals. SNAP, the program formerly known as food stamps, has never been funded by the States, but is now touted as wasteful and full of fraud. In reality, Congress is needs to cut massive amounts of money to pay for the huge tax break for the wealthy that Trump wants to enact in the budget reconciliation process.

Do you know how much the average person participating receives in Maine?

Less than $6 per day per person.

Do you know who needs food assistance in Maine?

1 in 7 people participate in rural Maine, but many more need it and don’t qualify or even do qualify, but don’t apply. Ninety percent of the households who use SNAP have older people, children, or people with disabilities and 70% have at least one person working. People in every county and every town are hungry because of the cost of living far outweighing salaries for many families and households.

SNAP also automatically qualifies households for free school meals which means the USDA reimburses schools at the highest rate without all the paperwork. Maine pays the difference between what USDA reimburses schools because of our universal meals law BUT Maine hasn’t budgeted enough to reimburse schools for what could be lost in the proposed laws.

To pay for these tax breaks for the wealthy, the House Agriculture Committee needs to “mark up” or cut $230 billion from their budget by May 12th. This can only come from SNAP so they will tell the states to pay for a huge chunk - we can’t here in Maine. They will limit who is eligible; they will kick people off; they will make it impossible to administer and then declare it doesn’t work anyway.

It feels like the tsunami is bearing down on Maine and no one will listen - Dem or Republican. The wave of hunger is gathering force as farmers are crunched by tariffs and uncertainty fueled by Trump’s mismanagement of our economy, but also loss of investments and loans that let small farmers plan. SNAP is a huge economic driver in rural Maine - if 20-30% of food dollars are lost that means 20-30% less dollars for growers, retailers and processers in Maine’s food system and job losses.

For ever one meal served by a food pantry, SNAP serves nine. Maine’s food pantries are out of food and don’t have staff or volunteers. Rich donors aren’t donating to non-profits and funders aren’t giving out grants, so Maine’s safety net won’t be there.

No one in power at the state or federal level is listening, or at least it feels like we are the researchers running around sweaty and frazzled while the authorities in suits explain why it’s impossible to plan now. Maybe I’m wrong.

Today we head to Capitol Hill to meet Maine’s delegation and ask for help. Wish us luck!

A recent article from the Press Herald summarized the extent of some of these cuts to our feeding programs in Maine and while some are being fought in court, some will stand: