Senate Republicans nixed an attempt by Democrats to fully fund Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits on Monday after those monies dried up over the weekend amid the government shutdown.
Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) attempted to pass a resolution via unanimous consent on Wednesday that would fund the program amid the shutdown, which is on the verge of becoming the longest in U.S. history. Specifically, his measure would have forced the Department of Agriculture to fund SNAP benefits for the month of November to the tune of $8 billion.
However, that effort was nixed by Republicans as Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) objected, arguing that the simple way of ensuring those benefits go out to 42 million recipients is by reopening the government.
“This isn’t lawmaking. It’s a political stunt by the Democrats. The resolution they’re offering is empty,” Barrasso said. “It is meaningless.”
“Democrats knew their actions threatened food assistance. They were fully aware of it,” he added, noting multiple times that Democrats have voted against the spending bill 13 times. “If Democrats really wanted to help struggling families, they’d stop blocking a clean continuing resolution.”
The Oregon Democrat pitched his measure while being flanked by a green placard that read: “Trump is weaponizing food for the sake of MAHA,” an acronym for “Make America Hungry Again.”
“Let’s all together say ‘fund SNAP’ not weeks or months from now, but right now so America’s families … will benefit,” he said.
The move comes on the heels of the Trump administration saying it would partially fund SNAP via a pocket of money at the Agriculture Department. That would cover $5 billion of those funds.
