House Speaker Mike Johnson erupted in frustration Thursday after learning that Democrat-led states filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) for attempting to determine how many illegal aliens are receiving taxpayer-funded welfare benefits under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).
At a press conference alongside USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins, Johnson blasted Senate Democrats for prioritizing “political theater” over feeding American families as the government shutdown stretched into its 31st day.
“They sued the USDA for asking them, simply asking them to tell them how many illegal aliens are on the programs in California, New York, and these other states,” Johnson fumed.
“They sued them. You need to take account of what people are doing here in each party, the leaders and the President of the United States.”
Johnson accused Democrats of voting 14 times to block a clean continuing resolution that would reopen the government and restore funding to SNAP, which expired earlier this week.
He said Democrats have “manufactured a crisis” in order to weaponize the shutdown for political gain while millions of Americans struggle to afford groceries.
“We are trying to get government to work more efficiently and effectively for the people, and we are getting stopped and hindered by political games by Democrats. That’s why we’re so frustrated.”
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Earlier, The Gateway Pundit wrote that a lawsuit, spearheaded by Maine’s Democrat governor and joined by 24 other blue states, accuses the USDA of unlawfully suspending SNAP benefits during the shutdown.
In the lawsuit are the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, and Wisconsin. The governors of Kansas, Kentucky, and Pennsylvania are also part of the lawsuit, according to WMTV.
The coalition argues that the USDA has access to billions in contingency funds and should use them to continue the program without congressional approval.
However, USDA officials say that the law requires congressional authorization to tap those funds and that Democrats’ refusal to pass a clean funding bill is to blame for the lapse.
“Senate Democrats have now voted 13 times to not fund the food stamp program, also known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Bottom line, the well has run dry. At this time, there will be no benefits issued November 01,” a notice reads on the USDA website.
“We are approaching an inflection point for Senate Democrats. They can continue to hold out for healthcare for illegal aliens and gender mutilation procedures or reopen the government so mothers, babies, and the most vulnerable among us can receive critical nutrition assistance.”
On Friday, U.S. District Judge John McConnell, an Obama appointee, ordered the administration to use emergency funds to temporarily restore SNAP payments, effectively overriding USDA discretion.
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