John,

Yesterday, after a federal judge ordered the Trump administration and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to fund SNAP, the administration announced it will only partially fund SNAP for November using contingency funds.¹ But that’s far from the whole story.

This morning, Donald Trump announced on social media that he will only fund SNAP once the government shutdown ends.² He’s already disrupted SNAP payments to more than 40 million people, marking the first time in the program's history that SNAP payments have been delayed. He’s making sure millions of families don’t get their full SNAP benefits this month, even threatening not to pay them at all―and forcing his own Press Secretary to backtrack his remarks.³

All of Trump’s political posturing is causing direct harm to tens of millions of people, especially children, older adults, and people with disabilities. During the first Trump administration, full SNAP benefits were paid out during a shutdown, and the judge’s ruling was clear that the administration has the legal authority to fully fund SNAP benefits this month.⁴

Not fully funding SNAP is a cruel choice and an act of political gamesmanship.

Send a message to Congress to do its job and pressure the Trump administration to fully fund SNAP just like it did during the shutdown in Trump’s first term.

The SNAP contingency fund has roughly $5 billion, which is more than half of the average monthly SNAP allotments. But there’s another $23 billion the administration had on hand as of last month that they can and should use to pay SNAP benefits in full in November and beyond.⁵

Every day that SNAP funding is held up or SNAP benefits are reduced, vulnerable families and individuals go without. Millions of people who are disabled, veterans, children, and unemployed people are at risk of hunger, while food banks are on the brink.

The administration can fully fund SNAP during the shutdown, and bring the shutdown to an end by agreeing to bipartisan negotiations with Congressional leaders looking to address rising health care and other costs. Instead, Trump and congressional Republicans would rather play a cruel game of politics.

Join us in calling on Congress to put its constituents first and come together to demand that the Trump administration fully fund SNAP now.

Thank you for all you do,

Deborah Weinstein
Executive Director, CHN Action

¹ Trump Administration Says It Will Pay Reduced SNAP Benefits For November
² Trump says SNAP will only get paid after shutdown
³ Americans will still get partial SNAP benefits despite Trump post, White House says
⁴ FRAC Applauds Court’s Most Recent Order Requiring the Provision of SNAP Benefits, Urges Immediate Action to Mitigate Hunger
⁵ The Trump Administration Can and Should Take Available Steps to Ensure SNAP Participants Get November Food Benefits