Part 2: U.S. Rep Bentz on SNAP, Child Care & Trump’s $20 million Golf tour
Editor’s Note - We have broken down questions and U.S. Rep. Cliff Bentz’s responses during a recent Rotary Club Meeting in The Dalles on Aug. 20th into four different stories that we will release during the next few days. Read Part 1 here.
SNAP Paperwork Burdens
Mike Ballinger asks U.S. Rep Cliff Bentz about the difficulty in the administration with SNAP benefits.
The Dalles, Ore., Aug. 20, 2025 — Mike Ballinger of The Dalles told Rep. Cliff Bentz on Wednesday, Aug. 20, that Oregon families eligible for SNAP food benefits are being tripped up by bureaucratic hurdles.
“The requirements … the registration, the reporting, twice a year they have to re-justify their eligibility,” Ballinger said at the Rotary Club meeting. “It’s a burden for people who are just trying to live their lives, and it excludes them from the program even if they’re eligible.”
Bentz agreed paperwork is a problem but placed responsibility squarely on Salem.
“Who do you think is in charge of the paperwork? The state,” he said. He argued Oregon has one of the nation’s worst track records for SNAP errors and has even been fined.
The congressman defended new federal rules requiring states to keep error rates under 5% and requiring most adults to work, volunteer or study 20 hours a week to qualify. He told Ballinger constituents should press state Sen. Daniel Bonham to ease paperwork burdens. “Call him and say, ‘Bentz said to yell at you, Daniel,’” he said.
Local Grant Loss vs. Trump’s Golf Spending
Debi Ferrer makes the stark comparison between the local loss of funding for early childhood education and President Donald Trump’s federal expenditures of $20 million for playing golf.
The Dalles, Ore., Aug. 20, 2025 — Debi Ferrer of The Dalles confronted Rep. Cliff Bentz on Wednesday over the loss of a $20 million federal grant for a child care and climate resiliency hub, comparing it to millions spent on Donald Trump’s golf trips.
“That project would have provided early learning for 200 children here and shelter space during emergencies,” Ferrer said. “At the same time, more than $20 million went to Trump’s golfing vacations. That’s fraud and waste.”
Bentz, who toured the facility last year, said he did not know why the grant was pulled but has asked his staff to pursue answers with the administration. “I’m not Donald Trump,” he told the crowd.
And he agreed, “It should bother everybody when we don’t know exactly what the rationale was.”
He said his office has raised the issue with federal liaisons. “We can talk to them about this grant and we will,” Bentz said, while acknowledging constituents’ frustration.
