FROM WASHINGTON EXAMINER: A food program that supports millions of low-income Americans could soon be affected by the shutdown as lawmakers blame one another for the Washington gridlock that is putting benefits at risk.
Millions of Americans’ benefits from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program are set to lapse on Nov. 1, with at least 25 states having announced they will cut off the program due to the government shutdown. It is one of several aid programs facing the consequences of Congress’s inability to pass a short-term spending deal to fund the government.
The blame game for the impending lapse of SNAP benefits is falling along party lines, as most funding has since the beginning of the shutdown on Oct. 1. Republicans argue that it is the fault of Senate Democrats, who have voted against the Nov. 21 continuing resolution 12 times.
Earlier in October, the Department of Agriculture warned, “there will be insufficient funds to pay full November SNAP benefits for approximately 42 million individuals across the Nation” if the shutdown continued
Congressional leaders now face affecting vulnerable constituents.
“Millions of American families are about to lose access to food assistance because Democrats are openly admitting to being afraid of their far-left base and refuse to reopen the government,” House Agriculture Committee Glenn Thompson (R-PA) said in a statement to the Washington Examiner.
“The idea that Democrats would use hungry families as ‘leverage’ is shameful,” Thompson continued. “We need to reopen the government, so we can put Americans first by making sure families can put food on the table and our farmers are supported.”
Senate Democrats are asking the Trump administration to find a means to fund SNAP benefits the way it did to pay military members. In a letter sent to the USDA on Thursday, 46 Democratic and Independent senators asked Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins to find a a way to pay for SNAP.
“Americans are already struggling with the rising cost of groceries, and they cannot afford a sudden lapse in grocery assistance,” the senators wrote. “We urge you to immediately communicate to states and committees of jurisdiction the USDA’s plans to disburse the contingency funding to state agencies and utilize all available legal authorities so that American families can get benefits without interruption. Democrats remain at the table and ready to negotiate reopening the government.”
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt addressed the issue on Thursday, saying, “Funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, known as SNAP, which provides food benefits to low-income families, is beginning to lapse this week in some states. If Democrats continue to hold Americans hostage, there will not be enough funds to provide SNAP benefits for more than 40 million Americans on November 1st, that is next week.”
The report also notes that Democrats’ “demands become moot when Nov. 1 first hits” as it also marks the beginning of open enrollment for Obamacare premiums.
KAROLINE LEAVITT: “If Democrats continue to hold Americans hostage, there will not be enough funds to provide SNAP benefits for more than 40 million Americans on November 1st. That is next week.”
“Democrats are solely responsible for all of this unnecessary pain. Why are they… pic.twitter.com/PgUnySxPZa
— Fox News (@FoxNews) October 23, 2025
The Schumer Shutdown has gone on long enough. More than 250,000 South Carolina households are on the verge of losing their SNAP benefits because Democrats are using vulnerable Americans as political leverage. Open the government- today! pic.twitter.com/jPJ2FAlw2q
— Senator Tim Scott (@SenatorTimScott) October 23, 2025
42 MILLION Americans are at risk of losing SNAP benefits.
Why?
Because Chuck Schumer and the Democrats would rather fight President Trump than feed families — all to please their radical base. pic.twitter.com/4PxOYwCZDq
— Steve Scalise (@SteveScalise) October 22, 2025
Read more at WashingtonExaminer.
