PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — On Friday, Gov. Josh Shapiro came to Nicetown to announce that November SNAP payments were flowing for Pennsylvania residents, but warned of potential legal battles ahead. Just hours later, an emergency appeal came down from the Supreme Court, granting the Trump administration’s request to halt program payments amid the government shutdown.
“This is a basic human right, and they’re trying to stop that, and I think it’s shameful," Shapiro said.
The governor heaped praise on his Department of Human Services, which he said acted quickly to sue the Trump administration alongside other states earlier this month over the cancellation of federal funding for SNAP. On Thursday, a federal judge ordered the Trump administration to fund SNAP through November.
“This is a compact that the federal government had made with people who were hungry in this country, and they broke that compact,” Shapiro said.
A day later, the administration asked a federal appeals court to block the order. And on Friday night, the Supreme Court made an emergency appeal to temporarily block a court order to fully fund SNAP food aid payments.
According to The Associated Press, a judge had given the Republican administration until Friday to make the payments through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. But the administration asked the appeals court to suspend any court orders requiring it to spend more money than is available in a contingency fund, and instead allow it to continue with planned partial SNAP payments for the month.
“America has a president and a vice president who don’t give a damn about all Americans. They have made that crystal clear,” Shapiro said. “Just do the right thing. Give up. You’re gonna lose again in court. The only thing you’re fighting for is to make Americans hungry. I don’t know why you’d want to do that.”
As the lower court mulls its decision, about 42 million Americans remain without their SNAP benefits.
Shapiro said on Friday evening that $100 million in SNAP benefits had been sent to the state's SNAP vendor. He had hoped that by midnight Friday, all the necessary funds would be distributed.
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy said in a statement Friday that New Jersey SNAP benefits are being disbursed again after the Thursday court ruling, aiding the nearly 800,000 residents who rely on SNAP.