Tennessee Senator Wants to Reduce Welfare For Bad Grades

Welfare reform has been a popular topic lately and everyone seems to have their own opinion on how to get Americans off welfare and government assistants.

Tennessee State Senator Stacey Campfield thinks that if the parent or guardian receiving welfare has a child in school, and that child isn't doing well, that the welfare should be cut by 30%. They are already cutting the welfare by 20% if the kid doesn't go to school. Now an extra 10% if they go to school and don't do well.

This is an attempt to break the cycle of poverty, Campfield says that education is the one element that can break that cycle. So families that are already struggling and children that are already having a hard time, if they can't make the grade, it's going to make the family struggle even more and that child will most likely have a harder time.

A single mom with 2 kids only receives $185 in welfare. Take away 30% of that, and the family will be living off of $130.

Campfield says "We’re not asking children to re-write the Magna Carta," he said. "A D-minus gets you through."

So for the kids that are struggling because the family is having a hard time putting food on the table, if he/she doesn't get good grades, it will be his/her fault that the family is going hungry. This will also put the teachers giving out the grades in a tough position knowing giving out a bad grade could mean the kid would go hungry for a month.

Here's the kicker - this is the same Senator that thinks HIV came from a man having sex with a monkey. Campfield said in an interview "Most people realize that AIDS came from the homosexual community, it was one guy screwing a monkey, if I recall correctly, and then having sex with men. It was an airline pilot, if I recall." He goes on to say "My understanding is that it is virtually -not completely, but virtually - impossible to contract AIDS through heterosexual sex...very rarely transmitted."

Campfield went on to say that the life span for gays and lesbians is "very short, Google it yourself." He justified this comment by quoting a Christian Apologetics Website.

Well it looks like someone might be going hungry for a couple weeks. How did this man get elected as Senator of Tennessee. Maybe we should cut his salary by 30%, or better yet, this is so dumb and idiotic, we should cut his salary by at least 50%. Here's a better idea, lets punish his family and tell them they are going to starve for the next week because he is under educated for his position. That sounds as fair as taking away the only food a child might receive because of bad grades.

Do you think this Senator makes a good point, or should he be removed from office?