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Drudge Retort: The Other Side of the News
Tuesday, January 20, 2026

Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins claims that Americans can eat three complete meals and a snack for just $15.64 and still follow all of the newly set nutritional guidelines.

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Brooke Rollins is still at it!

"We had run almost 1,000 simulations, and between $3 and $4 is a fair number if you can have access to that food. I just saw new numbers that were run: a full day, meaning 3 full square meals and a snack, is about $15.64."[image or embed]

-- Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com) Jan 20, 2026 at 11:44 AM

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The GOP is burned toast in November.

Trump will have to declare martial law to prevent voting.

#1 | Posted by Zed at 2026-01-20 04:55 PM | Reply

Cool, Rollins. Now do baby formula.

#2 | Posted by redlightrobot at 2026-01-20 05:00 PM | Reply | Newsworthy 4

^ THIS

#3 | Posted by e1g1 at 2026-01-20 05:12 PM | Reply

So a family of four can eat well for a mere $437/week! What a bargain!

#4 | Posted by chuffy at 2026-01-20 05:12 PM | Reply | Funny: 1 | Newsworthy 4

#4 lol

SO now you want this Gov to be able to Add AND Multiply?

They are way too busy being Incredibly Incompetent and Equally Evil.

#5 | Posted by Corky at 2026-01-20 05:25 PM | Reply | Newsworthy 1

Just so ------- stupid. I just can't understand how gullible and stupid MAGA supporters really are. It is has twisted and changed my view of my fellow Americans on the right.

#6 | Posted by moder8 at 2026-01-20 05:32 PM | Reply | Newsworthy 2

#6 Yep, Moder8.

#7 | Posted by A_Friend at 2026-01-20 05:33 PM | Reply

1,893.66 a month. Hm.
That doesn't seem to be a selling point.
Am I missing something?
That's more than the "Thrifty Food Plan" for Alaska/Hawaii ($1,277,00-$1,523.80) according to our trusted government's website at the usda:
www.fns.usda.gov

#8 | Posted by YAV at 2026-01-20 05:36 PM | Reply

Ya know... if you plan it right, that's not that far off... and doable... So many don't seem to know how to plan, shop, prepare and store food... or eat leftovers.

Frankly... I can make that work for a couple days.

Great... soooooooooooo nowwwwwwwwww... let's figure out housing and utilities...

Then medical...

Once you put it all together... then you have the calculation for what to provide everyone as a Universal Basic Income.
tsk tsk tsk... listen to me blabbing on about chit I'll never experience.

P.S. I remember when a similar formula was pushed during the Nixon admin... and most people weren't overweight. Also... we do look silly when newscasts use video clips of fat Americans to complain about food insecurity...

#9 | Posted by RightisTrite at 2026-01-20 05:36 PM | Reply

Americans can eat three complete meals and a snack for just $15.64

I guess it depends what you believe three complete meals consists of.

For example:

"A meal in a U.S. prison generally costs very little, often under $3 per person per day, with some facilities spending as little as $1-$2, focusing on cheap, calorie-dense foods ... The low daily food budget (e.g., around $3-$4 for all meals in California) prioritizes cost over nutrition, leading to reliance on processed items."

theappeal.org

www.vera.org

prismreports.org

#10 | Posted by ClownShack at 2026-01-20 05:45 PM | Reply

More from the cited article, ...

... While $15.64 is perhaps a slightly more realistic number for the cost of a day of meals, it's still incredibly low"and it isn't even consistent with Rollins's original claim.

Let's do some quick Trump Math: If every Rollins Meal only costs an average of $3.50, then three of them should only cost $10.50.

So how much is left for a snack? Just over $5, which is more than the cost of any of the Rollins Meals!

Does that make sense? No!

But it doesn't have to because it's Trump Math! ...


#11 | Posted by LampLighter at 2026-01-20 05:55 PM | Reply

Hey magat scum, is this really what you thought would be the situation a year into Piggy's second term? Is this what you voted for?

Seriously, answer that question.

#12 | Posted by truthhurts at 2026-01-20 05:56 PM | Reply

#@11 ... Does that make sense? No!

But it doesn't have to ...

Well, she is obviously a loyal Cabinet member, perhaps loyal to Pres Trump and not the American people, that is.


#13 | Posted by LampLighter at 2026-01-20 05:57 PM | Reply

This just in.

A combination affordability and healthcare plan.

Kill yourself.

No more food bills and if you do it right, not even a funeral bill

Try drowning way out to see or jump in a hot hot furnace or even a wood chipper will work if you jump in hard enough-get all the bone and gristle.

Save money for yourself AND your loved ones!

#14 | Posted by truthhurts at 2026-01-20 05:59 PM | Reply | Funny: 2

@#10 ... A meal in a U.S. prison generally costs very little, often under $3 per person per day, with some facilities spending as little as $1-$2, focusing on cheap, calorie-dense foods ...

Prisons have an advantage with high-volume purchasing and preparation.

On the other hand, if your comment is meant to imply that Pres Trump is trying to hold Americans prisoners, well ... that may be a different thread. :)

And speaking of Pres Trump, let's see Pres Trump only eat the meals that Sec Rollins proposed.



#15 | Posted by LampLighter at 2026-01-20 06:15 PM | Reply

It was commentary on our government's expectations for us.

We're treated as if we should be grateful to be allowed to live in this country. All of us.

What a privilege to have Trump send $40 billion of our tax dollars to a dictator in Argentina.

What a privilege to have Trump spend a billion taxpayer dollars on fixing a bribe plane.

What a privilege it is to fund his goon squad so he can attack us.

He's still digging up the White House to build his super bunker.

He's pocketing money from selling Venezuelan oil.

He's making billions of being the president.

And the rest of us should learn to live like prisoners.

We're being held hostage by 30% of the population who are either to stupid to realize they've been duped or to stubborn to admit it.

It's literally insane living in America right now.

#16 | Posted by ClownShack at 2026-01-20 06:33 PM | Reply

It was commentary on our government's expectations for us.

We're treated as if we should be grateful to be allowed to live in this country. All of us.

What a privilege to have Trump send $40 billion of our tax dollars to a dictator in Argentina.

What a privilege to have Trump spend a billion taxpayer dollars on fixing a bribe plane.

What a privilege it is to fund his goon squad so he can attack us.

He's still digging up the White House to build his super bunker.

He's pocketing money from selling Venezuelan oil.

He's making billions of being the president.

And the rest of us should learn to live like prisoners.

We're being held hostage by 30% of the population who are either to stupid to realize they've been duped or to stubborn to admit it.

It's literally insane living in America right now.

#17 | Posted by ClownShack at 2026-01-20 06:34 PM | Reply | Newsworthy 1

Sorry for the double post.

The WiFi signal isn't good where I currently am.

#18 | Posted by ClownShack at 2026-01-20 06:35 PM | Reply

#18 No worries, Clown. It does happen! :-)

#19 | Posted by A_Friend at 2026-01-20 06:39 PM | Reply

But Her Emails!

#20 | Posted by snoofy at 2026-01-20 07:00 PM | Reply

But His Tan Suit!

But His Autopen!

#21 | Posted by Corky at 2026-01-20 07:14 PM | Reply

@#18 ... Sorry for the double post. ...

Been there.

No worries. It happens.

#22 | Posted by LampLighter at 2026-01-20 07:35 PM | Reply

@#17 ... He's pocketing money from selling Venezuelan oil. ...

From what I've read, the money from those Venezuelan oil sales is going to unauditable private bank accounts in Qatar that Pres Trump controls.

What could possibly be wrong there?


#23 | Posted by LampLighter at 2026-01-20 07:43 PM | Reply | Newsworthy 1

"In food news you've had enough"

#24 | Posted by Tor at 2026-01-20 08:00 PM | Reply | Funny: 2

@#16 ... We're being held hostage by 30% of the population who are either to stupid to realize they've been duped or to stubborn to admit it. ...

I'd proffer, closer to 20% to 25%, rather than 30%.

#25 | Posted by LampLighter at 2026-01-20 08:31 PM | Reply | Newsworthy 2

Enjoy your dinner peasants

#26 | Posted by Nixon at 2026-01-21 08:07 AM | Reply

Eat tangerine sh^t, USA.

#27 | Posted by Jaspar at 2026-01-21 11:36 AM | Reply

New guidelines recommend 1.2-1.6 grams of protein per kilo of body weight per day.

That only works out to something like 3-5 oz of protein a day. Seems low to me...

In any case, looking at the new guidelines there isn't really anything controversial to me. Looks like the type of diet and food choices that are discussed and recommended by my PCP every time I go for an annual visit.

#28 | Posted by jpw at 2026-01-21 12:13 PM | Reply

"That only works out to something like 3-5 oz of protein a day. Seems low to me..."

That's on par with what a peasant in pre-Revolution France got, so...

#29 | Posted by snoofy at 2026-01-21 12:20 PM | Reply

#28 - JPW - including the Saturated Fat content? That's the biggest change - this remaking this history of Sat Fat. Red meat, whole milk, etc.

There are some differences between plant and animal sat fat, but I've seen no evidence that there's any health advantage to one over the other. They are bad.

There's also this conflation of grains/seeds being bad because they're used in ultra-processed foods, ignoring that whole grains are excellent as are nuts. This new guideline puts sat fats above those in importance. The Dr in charge of the FDA made no sense in his explanation. Horrible.

From my perspective this is all crazy summed up by asking Dr. Oz to counter "misinformation" doesn't help.

And for me the protein number is way too low.

#30 | Posted by YAV at 2026-01-21 12:51 PM | Reply

edition.cnn.com seems like a fairly well balanced perspective based on actual facts.

#31 | Posted by YAV at 2026-01-21 01:19 PM | Reply

Republicans: It's ok to eat meat again!

Trump Secretary of Agriculture: Piece of chicken

#32 | Posted by Derek_Wildstar at 2026-01-21 01:23 PM | Reply

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