US federal judge orders Trump administration to fully fund SNAP food assistance by Friday

WASHINGTON - A US federal judge on Thursday ordered the Trump administration to fully fund the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits for November by Friday amid the ongoing government shutdown.

"People have gone without for too long; not making payments to them for even another day is simply unacceptable," said John McConnell, chief judge of the US District Court for the District of Rhode Island.

On Friday, McConnell said that the Agriculture Department must fund SNAP with a contingency fund "as soon as possible".

On Monday, the department said that a total of 4.65 billion US dollars in a contingency fund will be used for November SNAP benefits, which could cover 50 percent of eligible households' current allotments.

On Tuesday, however, US President Donald Trump said on Truth Social that SNAP will not be funded until the government reopens, blaming the "Radical Left Democrats" for shutting down the government.

In his latest order on Thursday, McConnell criticized the Trump administration for only making a partial payment and also rebuked the president for stating "his intent to defy" a court order.

In a separate court filing on Thursday, Justice Department attorneys said they plan to appeal both Thursday's ruling and McConnell's earlier order mandating SNAP funding.

The longest government shutdown in US history has entered its sixth week as the budget impasse in Congress continues.

Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer said on social media platform X on Wednesday that "Trump's continued weaponization of hunger is heartless and vile," after writing a day earlier that the Republican president was treating hungry Americans as "political pawns" during the government shutdown.