"If I was receiving any federal or state benefits to help raise my family, I'd be glad to take a drug test. I think that would be something that would be acceptable to me if I was receiving tax benefits. I work hard for my money. The federal government or the state government has a right, I think, to merely ask people who are receiving benefits through TANF to submit to a drug test so that we can identify if you're abusing a substance and then how we go about treating you for that.
—Gov. Phil Bryant on a proposal to require drug testing for people receiving federal and state benefits.
Why it stinks: What's the guv been smoking? The first problem is that Bryant's idea is possibly illegal. At least one federal judge, in Florida, has already said so. Second, it's unclear that there's the political appetite for it as the drug-testing legislation hasn't survived the committee process in recent years. Thirdly, as the Associated Press reporter who asked Bryant the question pointed out, TANF already has a work requirement. Since Bryant oversees the agency that administers TANF, if there are people receiving benefits who are not working, it's his administration that's not following the law.
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