Judge pauses USDA plan to tie SNAP benefits to Trump's gender, immigration ideology
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A federal judge sided with California and other Democratic states on Friday in a preliminary injunction that blocked the Trump administration’s attempt to condition food benefits on compliance with the president’s policies on gender and immigration.Twenty states and the District of Columbia filed a lawsuit in March against the Trump administration in U.S.
District Court in Massachusetts, arguing that the “unlawful” and “unconstitutional” funding requirements are vague and designed to force policies on states.Billions in federal funding are ultimately at stake, including money for school lunch programs that provide meals to 30 million children nationwide and food stamps that support about 40 million Americans living in low-income households.
“As the Trump Administration tries to use essential programs and billions in funding as leverage to advance their hateful, discriminatory agenda, California continues to fight to uphold the law and ensure that our communities can continue to access the funding they need to thrive,” said California Atty.Gen.
Rob Bonta in a statement.The policy shift from the United States Department of Agriculture marks another effort by the president to force left-leaning states to submit to his positions on hot-button political and cultural issues to receive government funding.
California’s current budget relies on $174.5 billion in federal dollars, or roughly one-third of the overall state budget funds.Last year, the Trump administration canceled a sexual education grant to California after the state declined to remove gender identity from sexual education curriculum.
The administration is also restricting federal funds in an attempt to force states to ban transgender athletes from competing in women’s sports.The funding conditions from the USDA relate to gender ideology, women and girls’ sports and immigration, according to the law...