The Trump administration has sought to blame Democrats for the shutdown and the suspension of SNAP benefits. Last week, White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson told KQED in a statement that Democrats could choose to end the shutdown at any time by supporting a continuing resolution to extend federal appropriations, and a banner now at the top of the USDA’s website accuses Democrats of keeping the government closed as they “hold out for health care for illegal aliens and gender mutilation procedures.”
The lawsuit alleges that the USDA’s Oct. 24 decision to suspend SNAP benefits, despite having $6 billion in contingency funds available, contradicts the agency’s earlier statements that it could use those funds during the government shutdown. And it notes that USDA has never before chosen to cut off benefits during a government shutdown.
“While Donald Trump parades around the world trying to repair the economic damage he’s done with his incompetence, he’s denying food to millions of Americans who will go hungry next month,” Newsom said in a statement. “It’s cruel and speaks to his basic lack of humanity. He doesn’t care about the people of this country, only himself.”