GOP Lawmakers Weigh in on Trump’s Stopgap Funding of SNAP

The Trump administration decided this week that it will partially fund the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program this month as the federal government shutdown drags on with no end in sight.

“No Wyoming family should have to worry about putting food on the table because [Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.] and Senate Democrats are holding the government hostage. President [Donald] Trump is stepping up where Democrats won’t—providing partial SNAP funding for November to help struggling families,” Sen. Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo., told The Daily Signal.

“It’s time for Democrats to end their political games, reopen the government, and quit punishing hardworking Americans,” she added.

SNAP—more commonly known as the food stamp program—is a major federal program that provides benefits to about 42 million people each month. That accumulates to a monthly cost of about $8 billion. The Trump administration has said it will use emergency funds totaling about $4.65 billion to provide for SNAP needs this month. 

The Trump administration’s announcement came after two federal judges ruled last Friday that the SNAP benefits must continue.

“President Trump has been doing everything he can to make sure eligible Americans receive the benefits they deserve despite the Democrats holding the government hostage,” Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., told The Daily Signal.

“There is a simple solution to solving the SNAP issue: Chuck Schumer and the Democrats need to reopen the government immediately,” Schmitt said.

The potential reduction of SNAP benefits is just the latest hardship that has been imposed on Americans as a result of most Senate Democrats repeatedly voting against a stopgap continuing resolution bill to temporarily fund the government. Republicans control the White House and have majorities in both chambers of Congress, but that has so far not dissuaded the vast majority of Senate Democrats from blocking passage of the GOP-backed stopgap measure.

As a result, millions of federal workers have been furloughed, and essential federal personnel, including members of the military, have had to work under uncertain conditions. 

The shutdown has also led to the closure of the Smithsonian museums and the National Zoo, and updates to the nation’s air traffic system have been delayed—as have thousands of flights. Trump has attempted to alleviate some of the burden of the shutdown by repurposing unused federal research and development funds to pay the military.

Federal employees will be given back pay by law for the time they have spent furloughed—or working, in the case of essential federal staff.

Still, the shutdown, in its 35th day today, is on track to become the longest in history.