President Trump said Friday that he would move to fund the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) if provided with “the appropriate legal direction,” following a federal judge’s order directing officials to use an emergency fund to keep the program running.
SNAP benefits are set to expire Saturday as the government shutdown continues. Until now, Trump administration officials have maintained that they would not use the program’s emergency fund without explicit legal authorization, The Hill reported.
“Our Government lawyers do not think we have the legal authority to pay SNAP with certain monies we have available, and now two Courts have issued conflicting opinions on what we can and cannot do,” Trump posted on Truth Social.
“I do NOT want Americans to go hungry just because the Radical Democrats refuse to do the right thing and REOPEN THE GOVERNMENT,” he continued. “Therefore, I have instructed our lawyers to ask the Court to clarify how we can legally fund SNAP as soon as possible.”
President Trump said that even if he were to access emergency funds, SNAP benefits would still face delays in November. He urged Americans to pressure Democrats to end the shutdown, noting that his administration had already found creative funding solutions to ensure members of the military continued to receive their paychecks.
Advertisement
Earlier Friday, U.S. District Judge John McConnell issued an order blocking the Trump administration from halting SNAP payments over the weekend due to the shutdown.
McConnell dismissed the administration’s argument that the emergency fund was reserved for natural disasters or similar crises, ruling instead that it could be used despite statutory language specifying it may only be accessed when the SNAP program is already fully funded.
The judge directed the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to release the emergency funds “timely or as soon as possible” and to submit a status update to the court by Monday.
McConnell’s ruling came just minutes after U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani issued her own written order, indicating she may also move to block the administration from suspending SNAP benefits. Talwani gave the government until Monday to outline how it plans to utilize the program’s contingency funds.
The emergency fund, totaling about $5.25 billion, falls short of the $9 billion needed to fully cover November’s SNAP payments. The administration could bridge the gap using a separate account known as Section 32 funds, derived from customs receipts, though both judges acknowledged that the decision ultimately rests with the administration’s discretion.
Lawmakers from both parties have voiced concern about the potential lapse in SNAP benefits, which provide food assistance to millions of Americans each month. The program is one of several facing mounting strain as the government shutdown extends into its second month.
A majority of the 47 Senate Democrats have voted against a clean budget resolution to reopen the government 14 times. Sixty votes are needed to pass the bill in the upper chamber; so far, only a couple of Democrats have joined the 53 Republicans in voting for the House-passed funding bill.
Earlier in the week, the USDA, which manages the SNAP program, said that tens of millions of Americans will lose their food stamp benefits next month if Senate Democrats continue to refuse to agree on a funding agreement for the government.
“At this time, there will be no benefits issued on November 1st. Senate Democrats have now voted 12 times to not fund the food stamp program, also known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Bottom line, the well has run dry,” said the department’s website.
“We are approaching an inflection point for Senate Democrats,” the notice said. “They can continue to hold out for healthcare for illegal aliens and gender mutilation procedures or reopen the government so mothers, babies, and the most vulnerable among us can receive critical nutrition assistance.”
