Donald Trump and his party have a problem. They used their spending power to pay the troops, but refuse to use that same power to provide SNAP assistance to 41.7 million children, seniors, and people with disabilities.
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The Agriculture Department has a $5 billion emergency fund it could use to finance the program in November. The department’s 2026 financial plan confirmed that USDA has the authority to release the funds.
The Trump administration removed the 2026 budget plan from the USDA website and issued new guidance saying the funds could not be released.
However, the administration used the same authority to pay military personnel.
SNAP is a mandatory eligibility program that has its own emergency fund allocated by Congress.
The USDA previously advice on his website, he admitted that Congress’s intent was for the program to continue, even during a government shutdown: “Congress’s intent is obvious: SNAP operations must continue.” »
The contingency funds that Trump refuses to release were created “to ensure that the state can also continue operations during a federal government shutdown.”
Republicans and the Trump administration cannot defend this sudden and unwarranted reversal, which is why they have decided to get angry.
President Mike Johnson has put his party in a bind. Senate Democrats have proposed legislation to force the release of funds for SNAP and WIC, but since Johnson shut down the House and refuses to bring it back into session, he has offered an absurd double standard as to why Republicans will starve people.
Learn more and watch Johnson’s video below.