Republicans—think Mitt Romney in the immediate, bitter aftermath of the election—like to talk about how the safety net of government assistance is really a set of giveaways by President Obama that help ensure he'll get the votes of people receiving assistance. If so, food stamps really aren't working out for him: Among the 254 counties where food stamp recipients doubled between 2007 and 2011, Republican Mitt Romney won 213 of them in last year’s presidential election, according to U.S.