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"He's Weaponizing Hunger": Democratic Lawmakers Say Trump Is Sitting On The Funds Needed To Feed Americans Democrats are arguing that this one move from the current administration could prevent over 40 million Americans from going hungry next month. Hot Topic 🔥 Full coverage and conversation on Politics As the government shutdown nears the one-month mark, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has announced that funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) has "run dry." The Trump Administration issued a memo stating that reserve funds "are not legally available" to fund November benefits — meaning that, come Nov. 1, more than 40 million Americans who rely on SNAP to buy groceries each month will go without aid. But Democratic lawmakers say this doesn't have to be the case, pointing to the Trump Administration's own legal guidance — now deleted from the USDA website — that said otherwise. Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren took to X (formerly Twitter) to highlight the contradiction. "Let's be clear: there's funding available to cover SNAP benefits next month," she wrote, along with a screenshot of the administration's now-deleted shutdown plan. She highlighted one crucial line: "benefit funds are available for program operations even in the event of a government shutdown," it reads. BuzzFeed TrendingHot Topic Let's chat about all things Politics See our Politics Discussions As dozens of states sue the Trump Administration for refusing to tap reserve funds, prominent Democrats are criticizing the White House for leveraging the paused benefits to shift blame for the shutdown onto their party. "Donald Trump is a vindictive and heartless man," Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer wrote on X. @SenSchumer / Via Twitter: @SenSchumer "Your daily reminder that Trump absolutely can fund SNAP through contingency funds," wrote former Secretary of Labor Robert Reich. "The Trump Administration is weaponizing hunger as a political bargaining chip," wrote New Hampshire Senator Jeanne Shaheen. "When it comes down to it, this is a choice and they're choosing to not feed kids, seniors, veterans and working families instead of doing everything possible to get food assistance to those in need." California Governor Gavin Newsom wrote, "Congress set aside contingency funds specifically for SNAP food benefits during government shutdowns." @CAgovernor / Via Twitter: @CAgovernor As you'd expect, the internet has plenty of opinions. Some people are brushing off the issue of untapped reserve funds, instead insisting "the problem will go away" if Democrats approve the GOP bill to end the shutdown. But many others are echoing the outrage of Democratic lawmakers, saying the current administration is putting politics ahead of hungry families. "They are directly starving people on purpose just so they can get rid of ACA which is a bandaid solution keeping healthcare costs down," one person wrote. Someone else said, "When you leverage the basic needs of families for political gain, you reveal the true, ugly cost of ambition. That kind of power play tarnishes any supposed victory, because it’s built on the hunger of good, honest people who deserve better support." "You’re a lot closer to needing SNAP benefits than you are to becoming a billionaire," someone else said. As Nov. 1 looms, it's unclear whether Trump will follow through on his stance against using contingency funds to continue SNAP benefits. One person online suggested this may be a familiar playbook, waiting until the last minute to "swoop in" and magically save the day. We can only hope the funds set aside to support food assistance will be put to use, but only time will tell. Thoughts?
