Agriculture secretary says Trump admin. can’t move money around to fund SNAP: “We’re trying to follow the law here”
Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins told CBS News on Tuesday that the Trump administration doesn’t have the legal authority to keep food assistance flowing during the government shutdown, as the federal program that helps more than 40 million Americans pay for groceries is set to halt payments on Saturday.
Rollins pushed back on calls to keep the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, funded by tapping a $5 billion contingency fund, arguing the administration doesn’t have the legal authority to use that money. She also noted that it would cost about $9.2 billion to fully fund SNAP next month.
“We’re trying to follow the law here,” she told CBS News senior White House correspondent Ed O’Keefe on “The Takeout.” “We’ve used Band-Aid and duct tape all along this whole last month. And, and as we’ve said, it’s not going to be there on November 1st.”
Pressed on why the administration hasn’t sought money from other sources, given that it has kept paying members of the military and FBI personnel, Rollins noted that the money for military pay is partially coming from a private donor.
The administration’s position has drawn stiff pushback from Democrats, who have urged the Department of Agriculture to draw down its emergency contingency funding.
Rollins responded by pressing Democrats to vote to reopen the government.
“I find it extremely rich that people would say that President Trump or our administration is playing politics with people’s hunger,” Rollins said.
World Central Kitchen opens second location to pass out meals to federal workers
World Central Kitchen, the nonprofit organization founded by celebrity chef José Andrés, is feeding furloughed federal workers during the shutdown, with hot lunch until the stalemate ends. On Wednesday, they will open a second distribution at Navy Memorial Plaza, in addition to the Washington Canal Park location. Both will operate from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Senate GOP casts doubt on one-off bills to pay workers, fund programs, while Democrats make SNAP push
Senate Majority Leader John Thune poured cold water on the effort to up individual bills to pay certain groups of federal workers or fund programs like SNAP during the shutdown on Tuesday, as Democrats announced they would introduce legislation to fund the food aid program.
“This piecemeal approach, where you do one-off here, one-off there to make it seem more politically palatable to somebody or less painful, that’s just the wrong way to do this,” Thune said, urging that the simple way to resolve the issue is to approve the House-passed measure to fund the government until Nov. 21.
Moments later, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer announced Senate Democrats would introduce a bill to fund SNAP, after the Department of Agriculture said federal food aid will not go out on Nov. 1. He also said the bill would ensure funding for the Women, Infants and Children program, known as WIC.
The New York Democrat said the measure will get “broad, if not universal support” among Democrats. But whether it would come up for a vote or earn support from Republicans remained unclear.
The developments on narrower bills to pay workers or fund programs come as the Republican effort to advance a House-passed measure to reopen the government has fallen short of the 60 votes needed 13 times. Despite their effort to gain new support from Democrats, the bill has picked up no new support since before the shutdown began.
