Newt Gingrich is a loathsome little troll

Mr. Gingrich, a few minor points you seem to be unaware of:

1. "Food stamps" are not issued as a cash benefit.
2. "Food stamps" are not issued as a credit card.
3. You cannot use 'food stamps' to purchase anything other than food.

The program once known as food stamps is now known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. Here is how it works: you are eligible to receive SNAP benefits if your income is 130% or less of the national poverty line. When you begin to receive benefits you are given an EBT, or electronic benefits transfer card.

In many senses the EBT card works as a prepaid debit card. An amount of money, calculated based on your income and household size, is deposited on the card every month. You have a PIN. At the grocery store, instead of hitting 'debit' on the PIN pad, you hit 'EBT', type in your pin, and the total is taken out of your account and given to the grocery store.

You cannot use your SNAP EBT card to purchase anything other than SNAP-eligible food, because it is not a credit or debit card. This means that at the grocery store, you cannot use your EBT card to purchase napkins, or diapers, or alcohol, or hot food*. Understand that it's not a "you're not supposed to", it's that you can't. The computer system will not allow it; if your order includes $25.00 of SNAP-eligible food and $10.00 of beer and paper plates, and you pay by EBT, it will say you still owe $10.00.

Please, please, please, let's next do food policing and whether or not other people should be allowed to dictate what someone can buy with their SNAP funds. (Spoiler: no, they shouldn't.)

*I'm not sure why hot food is prohibited - you can buy frozen meals all you want, but no hot rotisserie chickens.