Impacted Americans, Advocates, And Members Of Congress Demand That The Trump Administration Stop Playing Politics With Food Assistance Programs
Tens of thousands of rural Americans demanded an end to political games with food assistance.
Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress are holding food assistance for 42 million Americans hostage to force through Donald Trump’s budget. This plan would raise healthcare premiums for millions of working families while handing out new tax cuts for billionaires.
And our work now is more important than ever. A federal judge ordered the President yesterday to make a payment by Friday to fully fund the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program for November. Already, in what is shocking but, unfortunately, not surprising, Trump is appealing the order.
Yesterday afternoon, Rep. Shontel Brown (OH-11), former Governor and Social Security Commissioner Martin O’Malley, RuralOrganizing.org hosted a virtual press conference featuring voices from rural America calling on the administration to use existing contingency funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).
Rep. Shontel Brown’s Comments During the SNAP Press Conference
Gov. Martin O’Malley’s Comments During the SNAP Press Conference
As budget negotiations dragged on over the GOP healthcare plan—a proposal that would raise costs and slash access to care for millions, rural families were once again caught in the crossfire of Washington’s political games.
As I said on the call, feeding people when they’re hungry and healing people when they’re sick aren’t just moral obligations for individuals; they’re among the highest callings of our government. No one should go hungry or go without care simply because the cost of living has gotten out of control.
Among the speakers on the call were Anna Sudol, a 22-year-old recent college graduate from Pittston, Pennsylvania, and Ronald Mohler, a retired senior from California—both of whom rely on SNAP to survive.
“I did everything right. I worked hard, got good grades, earned a degree—and yet I still can’t afford groceries,” she said. “When I lost SNAP before, I went four months barely eating. I’m terrified to go through that again.”
After the press event, USA Today highlighted Anna’s story in this article.
“I relied on SNAP not just for food, but for the distilled water I needed to use my C-Pap machine,” said Mohler. “Without those benefits, I couldn’t afford the basics that keep me alive.”
Hearing from Anna and Ronald was an essential reminder of what’s at stake with SNAP. USDA must use the SNAP contingency fund to keep food assistance programs fully funded during the government shutdown, as is required by law and has been done in every other government shutdown in modern history.
Programs like SNAP are a win–win for rural America. Not only does SNAP help families put food on the table, but it also supports local farmers and small-town grocery stores.
This week’s elections showed that across the country, Americans are looking for fighters against the chaos Trump is inflicting on our economy, our communities, our livelihoods, and our neighbors. At Rural Organizing, that’s our fight, too.
Nearly 65,000 people signed our petition demanding that the Trump Administration stop playing politics with SNAP and ensure that critical food assistance continued during the shutdown. If you haven’t signed on yet, please do so here!