By Center For American Progress
Photos: YouTube Screenshots
To hear the Trump administration tell it, it’s congressional Democrats who are to blame for the pain vulnerable Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) recipients and food bank clients are feeling. However, it is the administration itself that is preparing to illegally halt payments come November 1.
While the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has said it will refuse to spend funds that it is legally required to provide SNAP beneficiaries during a shutdown, the Trump administration has actually been waging a systematic assault on food assistance since January. In fact, the administration’s choices reflect its shutdown priorities: It is leaving SNAP unfunded while rewarding ICE agents with “super checks” for their deportation efforts and overreach—all while giving Argentina a $40 billion bailout.
This blatant refusal to use required money for SNAP is part of a larger trend. The Trump administration and congressional Republicans have cut grants for food banks and school meals; incinerated 500 tons of emergency food meant for children; passed the largest SNAP cuts in history (nearly $187 billion) in the Big Beautiful Bill (BBB); imposed tariffs that have increased food prices; prevented states from being reimbursed for covering the cost of SNAP benefits; and even hid evidence to conceal the harms of these cuts.
Below, we detail five specific ways the Trump administration has already been salting the earth for food banks and hungry families, making its shutdown tactics even more harmful…READ MORE
