Record food stamp numbers in US for Obama administration

Since his inauguration in 2009, President Barack Obama has seen the largest rise in people needing food stamps ever. Recent estimates put the number of people dependent on government assistance to eat basic meals at 47 million. How high is the number of people in poverty in the US? The number of people on government food assistance is more than the population of Spain.

At the time of President Obama's first inauguration in 2009 there were about 32 million people on food stamps. In November 2012, the latest report available recorded 48 million people on food stamps--an increase of nearly 50 percent.

It's estimated that there are about 50 million people who are officially poor in this country and another 50 million who are near poor. However, Congress has not yet warmed up to the Idea that raising minimum wages would decrease poverty. Adding to the complexity, there are opposition lawmakers who say that raising the minimum wage is a job killer that would stall low-wage hiring or bankrupt small businesses.

Colin Campbell, Press TV, Washington