Mother Jones@MotherJones·8m
36 million people are unemployed and the Trump administration is still trying to cut food stamps

36 million people are unemployed. Thousands more are still relying on food banks across the country. And Trump is still trying to cut food stamps.⁠
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In just two months, the coronavirus has cost more than 86,000 people their lives and 36 million people have lost their jobs, but the Trump administration is still trying to cut food stamps. Last December, the US Department of Agriculture proposed a federal rule that would remove 700,000 people from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program slated to go into effect in April. The new rule tied even more stringent work requirements to receiving food assistance. Citing the pandemic, a federal judge halted the rule change, but this week Trump administration filed an appeal in federal court.⁠
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America’s hunger crisis has become more urgent as the number of people seeking food assistance has skyrocketed. But still, the administration is pushing forward with the new rule that makes the work requirements for aid recipients who have no dependents described as “able bodied” even more stringent.⁠
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In 2019, 38 million people received food aid through the SNAP program, which is administered by the US Department of Agriculture, but advocates have long urged for expanded eligibility. Nonetheless, it remains a lifeline in poor communities and an economic engine as it creates jobs in the food and grocery sector.⁠
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