As the U.S. government shutdown drags on, food assistance for 42 million low-income Americans remains in jeopardy. Democratic Attorneys General from California, New York, New Jersey, and Minnesota have filed an emergency motion to block what they call the Trump administration’s “unlawful attempt” to withhold SNAP funding. New York AG Letitia James declared: “Food assistance is not a political issue. It is a moral imperative.”
00:00We are here today to announce a motion for a temporary restraining order we filed in our case
00:20challenging the U.S. Department of Agriculture's unlawful attempt to withhold Supplemental
00:26Nutrition Assistance Program funding, SNAP funding, from more than 41 million Americans.
00:36Food assistance is not a political issue. It's not Democrat, Republican, or Independent.
00:43It is a moral imperative. And no one should go hungry because their own government is refusing to feed them.
00:52The Trump administration went running to the highest court in the nation for permission to withhold food assistance for hungry Americans.
01:02If there was one through line here, it is that Donald Trump and his administration have been fighting tooth and nail not to feed hungry Americans.
01:16That is the one thing, despite all of this political tennis match that we're going to be describing, that is clear.
01:26The Trump administration has had many opportunities to do the right thing, to feed people in need.
01:32And time and time again, they make the deliberate choice not to do so.
01:36This administration is still going to the Supreme Court to fight for the right to starve Americans.
01:45I don't know what to say about it beyond it's the most heinous thing I've ever seen in public life.
01:52We are crystal clear on what we are fighting against.
01:59We are standing shoulder to shoulder against the federal government's callous and repugnant cruelty.
02:05Democratic attorneys general have been working around the clock to ensure that all Americans have access to food stamps.
02:11We filed this new TRO motion last night in response to days of chaos and confusion in Washington, because apparently our federal government will stop at nothing to deny Americans their food benefits.
02:24And this morning, the court ruled in our favor yet again.
02:28And later in this afternoon, we will be in court to continue this fight.
02:32Since Friday evening, the federal government has been fighting with equal parts desperation and animus to prevent Americans from using their benefits, despite a favorable ruling from the district court.
02:44It should shock the conscious of everyone in our country that the federal government would willfully and indeed aggressively fight to keep food off of our tables, food away from children, babies, veterans and senior citizens and the disabled.
03:01It is shocking and disgusting.
03:04It is all the more galling when you consider that the federal government may reopen soon.
03:10What was the point of the federal government's cruelty this weekend?
03:15Why subject people to prolonged anxiety and fear?
03:20And it is not an abstraction.
03:23Real people are hurting.
03:25They are hungry.
03:29And ordinary Americans who serve as the backbone of our economy should not be used as a political pawn ever again, period.
03:40There's an important legal principle here.
03:43Can the federal government, can the U.S. Department of Agriculture or the Trump administration just say when there are benefits that have been argued in Congress and appropriated and allocated for a certain purpose, which is to meet the needs of hungry Americans, can they arbitrarily and capriciously just say you can't have that?
04:03That that's really we I would we need to solve that problem right now because that is that is really at work in so many of the cases that we have had to file the fact the administration just sort of ignoring the will of Congress and all of the people they represent.
04:22Thank you to my great colleagues and all of our great allies.
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