Trump's USDA fights court ruling protecting food benefits during pandemic

[turbinetree]

Source: Reuters

BUSINESS NEWS MAY 13, 2020 / 4:07 PM / UPDATED 8 MINUTES AGO

CHICAGO (Reuters) - The Trump administration, aiming to tighten rules for federal food benefits, has appealed a federal judge’s ruling that temporarily enabled hundreds of thousands of people to maintain food stamp benefits during the coronavirus pandemic, according to court documents.

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, known as SNAP, provides free food to 36 million Americans. During the pandemic, millions of U.S. residents have lost jobs, and thousands have waited in lines at food banks.

Last year, Congress blocked a Trump administration-backed effort to tighten the rules through the Farm Bill. Since then, the administration has tried changing rules at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which administers the program.

Critics said the appeal will hurt poor Americans, noting that last month the U.S. economy lost 20.5 million jobs, the steepest plunge in payrolls since the Great Depression.

Additional reporting by Tom Polansek in Chicago; Editing by David Gregorio

Read more: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-foodstamps/trumps-usda-fights-court-ruling-protecting-food-benefits-during-pandemic-idUSKBN22P33J?il=0

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You know old Ronnie Raygun and Newt Gingrich BS started this BS of attacking the poor......

[flying_wahini]

1. Typical of the "kick them while they are down" Republicans.

[ChiTownDenny]

2. "You know old Ronnie Raygun and Newt Gingrich BS started this BS of attacking the poor."

I remember Reagan classified ketchup as a vegetable in school lunches.

[mr_lebowski]

3. Needy Amin is such a F****** DICK ...

What a very Pro-Life, Pro-Family, and CHRISTIAN thing to do ... let's starve out the poor children in the middle of a pandemic, with unemployment at Great Depression levels.

[cutroot]

4. They attack the people with the least ability to fight back.

Deplorable is not a bad enough name for them.

[riversedge]

6. I have read that the group hardest hit are the hourly wave servive workers-hotels, cleaners,

food service etc. they are ones with no benefits--no health care either. now trump wants them to go hungry. damn him

[erronis]

5. Almost like "someone" is trying to reenact the Hooverville's of yesteryear.

Foment a rebellion with marches of unemployed and starving peoples?

Incapacitating the government?

Now, who could possibly benefit from this?

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

7. God forbid people are helped in times of economic hardship.

[choie]

8. what better time to tighten rules

on SNAP than during a pandemic?