What happened
The Trump administration must fully fund November’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits to the tune of roughly $9 billion by Friday, a Rhode Island federal judge ruled Thursday. Shortly after John McConnell delivered his ruling, the Justice Department filed a notice to appeal the decision.
Who said what
In failing to fully fund the food assistance program during the ongoing federal shutdown, the government also “failed to consider the harms individuals who rely on those benefits would suffer,” said McConnell. “Not making payments to them for even another day is simply unacceptable.”
His order came as “the partial funding disbursed by the Agriculture Department earlier this week had yet to reach” the 42 million Americans who “qualify for the benefits,” said The Washington Post. Vice President J.D. Vance lambasted the judge for “telling us what we have to do in the middle of a Democrat government shutdown.”
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What next?
Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) reportedly plans to call a vote on a new bipartisan package of funding bills Friday, as the shutdown enters its 38th day. Democrats, “stiffened by their party’s big election wins Tuesday,” are expected to block the package, Politico said.
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