Tag: welfare

About 1 in 5 Kids Are at Risk of Losing SNAP. Centralized Control Keeps Failing Low-Income Families.

The federal government shutdown is disrupting major federal programs, including the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Now one in five children nationwide risks losing benefits because Congress has failed to pass a budget. On October 30, a federal judge ordered the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to draw from SNAP’s contingency fund to cover payments, but that fund holds roughly $5–6 billion—barely enough to cover three weeks of payments for a program that spends more than $8 billion each month. 

The ongoing deadlock highlights SNAP’s fragility due to its near-total reliance on federal funding. More importantly, its chronic dependency on Washington’s one-size-fits-all solutions has left it failing the very children it’s supposed to help. The best way to ensure healthy outcomes for kids and protect them from the partisan crossfire of D.C. politicking is to break the federal grip on nutrition programs.

Washington has become a permanent fixture of childhood in low-income America. The N in SNAP stands for “nutrition,” but federal food aid has routinely failed to deliver healthy diets for low-income families despite nearly $2 trillion in spending since 2000. Almost one-quarter of food purchases by SNAP households are for junk food, which undermines the efforts of doctors and other federal agencies to promote healthy diets. SNAP participants also have higher rates of obesity and poorer nutrition than nonparticipants, regularly failing to meet dietary guidelines while performing poorly on key health indicators. All of this has helped drive child obesity to nearly one in five children and adolescents as of 2020.

SNAP may provide assistance to families, but a program that consistently fails to deliver positive outcomes for the children it aims to serve falls far short of its purpose.

We’ve seen this problem before—and its solution. Like SNAP, Congress designed Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) to assist low-income households, but its structure created perverse incentives that encouraged single motherhood, punished work, and trapped families in dependency for years. The 1996 welfare reforms replaced AFDC with Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), a fixed block grant program that provided states with much-needed flexibility to innovate and tailor their programs to fit the needs of their residents.

States leveraged TANF’s block grant flexibility by shifting funds from pure cash assistance to targeted supports such as childcare subsidies, job training, and education programs. These reforms helped parents—especially single mothers—overcome employment barriers and increase their income. The results surpassed everyone’s predictions. Within a decade, more than 1.6 million children were lifted out of poverty. Additionally, poverty in single-mother families fell to record lows, and overall poverty and child hunger declined substantially. All of this occurred while welfare caseloads declined by more than half.

By converting SNAP into a block grant and gradually decoupling it from federal dollars, states would be able to take on decision-making and responsibility for their programs, controlling funding and tailoring solutions to the needs of their low-income families. Just as TANF prioritized economic independence and employment, state SNAP reforms could prioritize better health and self-sufficiency.

The current shutdown should serve as a catalyst for Congress to reassess the federal role in welfare. Children shouldn’t go hungry because Congress can’t govern—nor should they be dependent on the D.C. bureaucracy for their food. SNAP’s centralization and reliance on federal dollars have caused it to fail at meeting the nutritional needs of children, and now, millions of families face the prospect of sudden benefit disruptions.

Congress should stop treating Americans as collateral damage in their fight over extending Obamacare subsidies and end the shutdown immediately. While restoring federal funding will avoid immediate disruptions to benefits, Congress should also reform welfare to ensure it helps rather than hinders the families who rely on it. 

SNAP is outdated. Congress should devolve funding and administration to the states, allowing them to pursue more effective nutrition policies for low-income families.

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Trump: ‘I Do NOT Want Americans to Go Hungry’ — Seeks Way to Pay SNAP, Gives Out Schumer’s Number

President Donald Trump said Friday he has instructed government lawyers to seek immediate court guidance on how to legally continue payments for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) amid the ongoing government shutdown, as the program faces imminent funding delays while Democrats refuse to pass a clean spending bill.

“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 wrote 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.”

The president explained he has instructed lawyers “to ask the Court to clarify how we can legally fund SNAP as soon as possible,” warning that even with an immediate resolution, benefits may be delayed as states process payments. “If we are given the appropriate legal direction by the Court,” Trump declared, “it will BE MY HONOR to provide the funding, just like I did with Military and Law Enforcement Pay.”

Several days ago, Vice President JD Vance confirmed that U.S. troops would continue receiving paychecks during the shutdown, following a $130 million private donation accepted by the Department of War to cover military salaries.

The message follows warnings that the Democrat-led shutdown could halt November SNAP payments. Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) noted Thursday was the Democrats’ “15th chance” to reopen the government, warning that their continued opposition to a clean continuing resolution would cause benefits to “run dry.”

The U.S. Department of Agriculture previously cautioned that it lacks sufficient funds to issue November benefits, with a contingency reserve of $5 billion falling short of the $8 billion needed to sustain the program. Several governors, including Virginia’s Glenn Youngkin (R), have declared emergencies over the looming lapse.

The Washington Post editorial board this week faulted Democrats for prolonging the shutdown, writing that it is “wrong that Democrats have held the government hostage” over demands to extend Obamacare subsidies. The paper warned that if the standoff persists, “families could start to go hungry.”

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ), and fellow Democrats, including Sens. Alex Padilla (D-CA), Mark Kelly (D-AZ), and Mazie Hirono (D-HI) have argued that Trump could use emergency funds to continue SNAP, claiming he has “billions” at his disposal but is “choosing not to use them.” Rep. Andy Kim (D-NJ), meanwhile, accused Republicans of refusing to negotiate, stating that “Republicans control the House, the Senate, and the White House” and should “bring the House back into session to work and negotiate for the people they claim to serve.”

Trump rejected that characterization in his Truth Social message Friday: “The Democrats should quit this charade where they hurt people for their own political reasons, and immediately REOPEN THE GOVERNMENT.”

He ended his post by urging Americans who rely on SNAP to pressure Democrats directly: “Call the Senate Democrats, and tell them to reopen the Government, NOW! Here is Cryin’ Chuck Schumer’s Office Number: (202) 224-6542.”

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President Trump Responds to Judge’s Ruling on SNAP Benefits

President Trump on Friday evening responded to a judge’s ruling on SNAP benefits.

More than 40 million Americans rely on SNAP benefits, and the $5 billion emergency fund was not enough to cover the program for November.

Unions and nonprofit groups filed a lawsuit against the US Department of Agriculture earlier this week ahead of the November 1 cutoff.

Funds for the SNAP benefits are drying up because Schumer and the Democrats refuse to vote for the clean CR bill to reopen the government.

US District Judge John McConnell, an Obama appointee, ordered Trump on Friday to use the emergency funds for the SNAP program.

A separate federal judge in Massachusetts ruled the USDA has the power to fund SNAP benefits.

Separately, Judge Indira Talwani, also an Obama appointee, stopped just short of issuing a Temporary Restraining Order and said she will hold a hearing on Monday.

President Trump said two courts issued conflicting opinions on how the SNAP benefits can be funded during the shutdown, so he instructed DOJ lawyers to ask the court to clarify how his administration can legally fund the program.

“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. I do NOT want Americans to go hungry just because the Radical Democrats refuse to do the right thing and REOPEN THE GOVERNMENT,” President Trump said on Truth Social.

“Therefore, I have instructed our lawyers to ask the Court to clarify how we can legally fund SNAP as soon as possible. It is already delayed enough due to the Democrats keeping the Government closed through the monthly payment date and, even if we get immediate guidance, it will unfortunately be delayed while States get the money out,” Trump said.

President Trump dropped Schumer’s office number!

“If we are given the appropriate legal direction by the Court, it will BE MY HONOR to provide the funding, just like I did with Military and Law Enforcement Pay. The Democrats should quit this charade where they hurt people for their own political reasons, and immediately REOPEN THE GOVERNMENT. If you use SNAP benefits, call the Senate Democrats, and tell them to reopen the Government, NOW! Here is Cryin’ Chuck Schumer’s Office Number: (202) 224-6542,” Trump added.

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U.S. Secret Service Seized 17 Skimmers, Stopped $17M of EBT Fraud in Texas

The U.S. Secret Service and local law enforcement seized 17 illegal electronic benefit transfer skimmers that stopped nearly $18 million of fraud in San Antonio, Oct. 28-29.

Law enforcement from the San Antonio Police Department and the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office conducted EBT fraud and payment card skimming outreach. 

Law enforcement visited 712 businesses and removed 17 illegal skimming devices, preventing an estimated potential loss of more than $17.7 million. More than 4,300 point-of-sale terminals, gas pumps and ATMs were inspected. 

Teams also distributed educational materials about Electronic Benefit Transfer fraud and skimming to help businesses identify illegal skimming devices in their point-of-sale terminals, gas pumps and ATMs.

“The U.S. Secret Service greatly appreciates our law enforcement partners as, together, we aim to proactively identify and remove illegal skimming devices in San Antonio,” said Brian Gibson, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Secret Service’s San Antonio Field Office. “Removing these devices before card numbers can fall into the hands of criminals underscores our commitment to preventing EBT fraud which impacts our most vulnerable community members.”

This effort follows a series of more than 20 similar operations conducted by the U.S. Secret Service and law enforcement partners nationwide.

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5 States Handed Out $1.4B In Federal Medicaid Funding To Illegals

Five states and Washington, D.C., funneled more than $1.35 billion in federal taxpayer Medicaid funding to illegals, according to a preliminary audit of the program completed by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).

CMS Administrator Dr. Mehemet Oz posted the results of the preliminary audit on social media showing California, D.C., Illinois, Washington, Colorado, and Oregon spent millions each on illegals, with California spending the bulk, topping over $1.3 billion alone.

That money, according to Oz, was spent “just in the last few months.”

The left constantly claims this does not, or even cannot, happen because it is against federal law to use programs like Medicaid — something meant for Americans — for illegals, but that small sample of states shows that states are defrauding the American people out of their own programs to the tune of billions of dollars.

That claim is even more spurious considering the Democrats are only days away from breaking the all-time longest government shutdown record because they care more about funding health care for illegals than citizens of their own country.

“Some want to deny that illegal immigrants are receiving Medicaid. Others insist it’s illegal for Medicaid to cover illegal immigrants. And others accurately point out that hospitals can provide emergency services to illegal immigrants under the program,” Oz said, noting CMS is intending to have the money returned to them.

States share Medicaid funding responsibilities with the federal government, and they administer the program independently. The law does not prohibit the states from using their own money to pay for illegals, just federal funding. (This exception provides a back door for federal tax dollars to de facto fund illegals, as money is fungible.)

According to Oz, Democrats are so zealous about giving American money to illegals that even that massive loophole was not enough, stating, “that didn’t stop Democrats from going even further by breaking federal law to give illegal immigrants federal Medicaid dollars meant for American citizens.”

“Whether willful or not, the states’ conduct highlights a terrifying reality: American taxpayers have been footing the bill for illegal immigrants’ Medicaid coverage, despite many Democrats and the media insisting otherwise,” he added.

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Judges Order Trump Admin to Fund SNAP — There’s Just One Problem

Two federal judges have just ruled that the Trump administration must use contingency funds for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).

Two federal judges ruled nearly simultaneously on Friday that President Donald Trump’s administration must to continue to fund SNAP, the nation’s biggest food aid program, using contingency funds during the government shutdown.

The rulings came a day before the U.S. Department of Agriculture planned to freeze payments to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program because it said it could no longer keep funding it due to the shutdown.

The program serves about 1 in 8 Americans and is a major piece of the nation’s social safety net. Word in October that it would be a Nov. 1 casualty of the shutdown sent states, food banks and SNAP recipients scrambling to figure out how to secure food. Some states said they would spend their own funds to keep versions of the program going.

The Trump administration has long said it doesn’t have the legal authority to use the contingency funds to pay for SNAP benefits during the prolonged Schumer Shutdown.

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Patients go without needed treatment after the government shutdown disrupts a telehealth program

Bill Swick has a rare degenerative brain disease that inhibits his mobility and speech. Instead of the hassle of traveling an hour to a clinic in downtown Chicago to visit a speech therapist, he has benefited from virtual appointments from the comfort of his home.

But Swick, 53, hasn’t had access to those appointments for the last month.

The federal government shutdown, now in its fifth week, halted funding for the Medicare telehealth program that pays his provider for her services. So, Swick and his wife are practicing old strategies rather than learning new skills to manage his growing difficulties with processing language, connecting words and pacing himself while speaking.

“It’s frustrating because we want to continue with his journey, with his progress,” 45-year-old Martha Swick, a caregiver for her husband since his diagnosis three years ago, said during an interview at their home in Minooka, Illinois. “I try to have all his therapy and everything organized for him, to make his day easier and smoother, and then everything has a hitch, and we have to stop and wait.”

Their experience has become common in recent weeks among the millions of patients with Medicare fee-for-service plans who count on pandemic-era telehealth waivers to attend medical appointments from home.

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Federal Judge Weighs Forcing USDA to Pay SNAP Benefits Despite Shutdown

A federal judge considered ordering the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to tap into a $5 billion contingency fund to avoid a lapse in the national food stamp program on Oct. 30.

U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani, during a hearing in Boston, said the government should find a way to continue giving limited benefits to recipients of the Supplemental Nutrition and Assistance Program (SNAP), rather than cutting it off completely.

“The steps involve finding an equitable way of reducing benefits,” she said.

Talwani is expected to issue a ruling by the end of Oct. 30.

Approximately 1 in 8 Americans benefit from SNAP, and at a cost of around $100 billion per year, it is one of the country’s most amply funded social service initiatives.

On Oct. 10, the USDA informed states that it would not disburse benefits for November because of the government shutdown.

The program is set to run out of funding on Nov. 1 if the shutdown continues. Senate Democrats have declined to support a House-passed bill to fund the government, and earlier this week, Republicans did not support a bill that provided standalone funding for SNAP.

As Republicans and Democrats continue to face off on the issue of reopening the government, 25 states sued on Oct. 27, insisting that the USDA could harness the $5 billion emergency fund to keep the program going.

However, Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said this was illegal on Oct. 27, noting that those funds were meant to pay for school meals and infant formula.

A memo from the USDA echoed Johnson’s statement, noting that the emergency fund—along with $23 billion in tariff revenue—is being used to cover school breakfast and lunch programs, along with the Women and Infant Children (WIC) program, which provides infant formula and healthy foods to babies and their mothers.

That memo also notes that state governments cannot be reimbursed if they choose to cover SNAP benefits, a program that costs about $8 billion per month. Some states, such as Virginia, are planning to launch their own stop-gap programs to ensure food security.

The plaintiff states argue that, in addition to harming the tens of millions of Americans who rely on SNAP, the program’s suspension will harm the businesses where they shop.

Attorneys for the government argue that the program cannot be funded during the shutdown, since this is a violation of the Antideficiency Act, which dictates how the government operates during a funding lapse and “forbids the United States from making such an obligation without an appropriation.”

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Democratic Congresswoman’s Dishonesty Exposed When Interviewer Calls Her Out on ‘Poison Pill’ Claim

Democrats’ responsibility for the ongoing federal government shutdown has forced them to perform some hilarious mental gymnastics.

For instance, Thursday on C-SPAN, Democratic Rep. Janelle Bynum of Oregon first refused to answer interviewer Greta Brawner’s question and then, when properly pressed on her non-answer, accused Brawner of pinning blame for the shutdown on Democrats, who, in point of fact, have repeatedly refused to vote to end it.

Indeed, throughout the interview Bynum took an absurdly evasive approach to the interviewer’s direct questions.

To begin, Brawner noted that funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) will expire on Saturday.

“Should Democrats pass a stand-alone bill to fund SNAP benefits?” the interviewer asked.

Bynum replied with tedious pablum about how Republicans control the House, Senate, and White House. She also added platitudes about making sure children do not go hungry.

“Is that a ‘yes,’ then, that there should be a vote on the stand-alone legislation?” Brawner asked.

“I’m here; my Republican colleagues are on vacation. We want to make sure that we stand up for American people,” Bynum responded before blaming House Speaker Mike Johnson.

In other words, the interviewer saw from the beginning that the Democrat congresswoman would not give a straight answer.

Moments later, Brawner tried another question. This time, Bynum grew flustered.

“[Republican Rep. Tim Burchett of Tennessee] made the argument that Democrats in previous situations avoided government shutdowns by voting thirteen times for so-called ‘clean’ continuing resolutions that would fund the government at the previous year’s funding levels,” Brawner said. “Why not agree now?”

Bynum responded by posing as someone who operates above politics, demanding a clean bill.

“They did have a clean CR vote on Sept. 19 in the House,” Brawner said. “Did you vote for it?”

“I disagree with your characterization,” Bynum replied, “and want to make sure that we’re very clear about what Republicans have been doing. Any bill that they put forth, they’ve always had some extra stuff to it. There’s always been a poison pill to it. So I disagree with your characterization.”

“What were the poison pills of the clean CR, or the continuing resolution — you say it’s not clean — that was voted on in the House in mid-September?” Brawner asked.

Incredibly, Bynum then accused the interviewer of having an agenda.

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Who gets food stamps? Viral chart misleads about SNAP recipients’ race, ethnicity

With millions of people at risk of losing access to the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program starting Nov. 1, a viral chart claimed to show the majority of the nation’s food stamp recipients are non-white and noncitizens.

The chart, titled “Food Stamps by Ethnicity,” listed 36 groups of people and said it showed the “percentage of U.S. households receiving SNAP benefits.” 

The groups were labeled by nationality such as “Afghan,” “Somali,” “Iraqi,”  along with the racial groups “white,” “Black” and “native.” The chart appeared to show that Afghan people were the largest group receiving SNAP benefits, at 45.6%, followed by Somali (42.4%) and Iraqi (34.8%). White people, represented on the chart with the American flag, were third to last at 8.6%.

The federal government shutdown, which started Oct. 1, is the cause of the looming SNAP funding lapse. SNAP provides food purchasing benefits to low-income households. Conservatives have peddled the misleading narrative that Democrats are pushing for healthcare for illegal immigrants, and people commenting on the chart rehashed a similar talking point.

“Who is getting their EBT cut,” read the caption of an Oct. 25 X post sharing the chart, which had 3.1 million views as of Oct. 27. EBT stands for Electronic Benefits Transfer, which is a SNAP payment system.

“Only 18.7% of EBT or food stamp recipients are American. Let that sink in…” read another post sharing the chart, seemingly mistakenly referring to the figure next to the word “Armenian”; there was no “American” category in the chart. “We are subsidizing foreigners on the taxpayers dime.”

The chart doesn’t show the full picture of SNAP recipients by race or ethnicity. The most reliable source for the breakdown of SNAP recipients by demographics comes from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which administers the program. 

According to the most recent USDA data available, from 2023, white people are the largest racial group receiving SNAP benefits, at 35.4%. African Americans are next, making up 25.7% of recipients, then Hispanic people at 15.6%, Asian people at 3.9%, Native Americans at 1.3% and multiracial people at 1%. The race of 17% of participants is unknown.

The same report found that 89.4% of SNAP recipients were U.S born citizens, meaning less than 11% of SNAP participants were foreign-born. Of the latter figure, 6.2% were naturalized citizens, 1.1% were refugees and 3.3% were other noncitizens, including lawful permanent residents and other eligible noncitizens.

While large shares of the groups listed in the chart may receive food stamps, “they are certainly a tiny share of the households and spending on SNAP,” said Tracy Roof, University of Richmond associate professor of political science.

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