First Thing: Trump administration to fund just half of food stamp benefits | US news

Good morning.

The Trump administration said Monday it would provide only partial relief to food stamp recipients, amid growing uncertainty among nearly 42 million people regarding the supplemental nutrition assistance program (Snap).

The Ministry of Agriculture said it would use emergency funds to continue aid, but only 50% of normal funds. Money for the program officially ran out Saturday due to the government shutdown, now in its 35th day, as congressional Republicans continue to bicker with Democrats.

• How did we get here? As a result of the shutdown, Donald Trump threatened to cut food aid for the first time in the program’s more than 60-year history. Last week, a federal judge blocked the Department of Agriculture from suspending Snap entirely.

• What impact will it have? There are already long lines at food banks across the country. Chris Stein spoke to people affected and many said they would have to cut back on food to get by. “I am stunned by the cruelty,” one said.

Polls open across country as Trump threatens to cut funding if Mamdani wins New York mayoral election

New York City mayoral candidates had a wild final day of campaigning across the city yesterday as voters headed to the polls in New York today, as well as for gubernatorial races in New Jersey and Virginia and a voting redistricting initiative in California.

Last night Donald Trump issued a threat to New Yorkers: Stop Zohran Mamdani or pay. “If Communist Candidate Zohran Mamdani wins the New York City Mayoral Election, it is unlikely that I will contribute Federal Funds to my beloved first home beyond the required minimum,” he said, falsely labeling Mamdani who advocates democratic socialism and campaigns on affordability.

• Can Trump do this? The president does not directly determine how much money any city receives from the federal government; Appropriations are a constitutional function of Congress. But control over how the money is spent or retained in forfeiture actions prohibited under federal law has become a matter of legal debate.

• What do the New York polls say? A recent survey AtlasIntel Democratic nominee Mamdani received 44%, independent Andrew Cuomo 39% and Republican Curtis Sliwa 16%.

UN agency says at least 36,000 Sudanese have fled to RSF since the fall of El Fasher

More than 36,000 people fled Sudan’s Kordofan region between October 26 and 31 amid escalating fighting, the UN migration agency said, after the city of El Fasher in neighboring Darfur was captured by paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) after more than a year of siege.

Most people set out on foot towards the town of Tawila, west of El Fasher. housing The UN said more than 652,000 people were displaced.

• What do we know about war crimes allegations? Prosecutors at the international criminal court said in a statement on Monday. gather evidence Alleged mass murders, rapes and other crimes in Al Fasher. Witnesses reported that RSF fighters went from house to house killing and sexually assaulting civilians. According to the World Health Organization, gunmen killed at least 460 people in a hospital and kidnapped doctors and nurses.

In other news…

• The trial of the man who threw a sandwich at a federal agent in DC in August began yesterday. which turned Sean Charles Dunn into a symbol of resistance to the rise of Donald Trump’s law enforcement.

• Two Detroit-area men have been charged with terrorism-related crimes. The men had been investigating LGBTQ+ bars in Ferndale, according to the 72-page criminal complaint, which remains unsealed in federal court.

• At least 20 people died and 320 people were injured in the 6.3 magnitude earthquake that occurred in northern Afghanistan. The Taliban health ministry said on Monday.

• Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi, the Israeli army’s top legal official, was arrested and detained after admitting to leaking footage showing soldiers mistreating a Palestinian prisoner.

Status of the day: More than $70 trillion in inherited wealth over the next decade will increase inequality, economists warn

More than $70 trillion in inherited wealth will be passed down across generations around the world over the next decade, a group of economists and campaigners have said, further increasing inequality and highlighting the need for intervention by the G20 group of leading countries. Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz said the report found that inequality had increased in more than eight of the 10 countries.

Don’t miss this: The Forgotten Republic of Transnistria – photo essay

Photographer Didier Bizet spent time documenting life in the self-declared autonomous Republic of Transnistria, which is not recognized by the international community. His situation raises complex questions about the identities of those – Ukrainians, Russians, Moldovans and Bulgarians – who are searching for direction and living in a country without a clearly defined national identity.

Climate control: Only 3% of international climate aid goes to communities in transition

Less than 3% of international aid to reduce carbon emissions supports a “just transition” for workers and communities away from polluting industries, according to a report by nonprofit ActionAid. He warns that the world’s response to the climate crisis risks deepening rather than resolving inequality.

Latest Thing: ‘I’m so excited’ – Jesse Eisenberg donates his kidney to a stranger

42-year-old actor and director Jesse Eisenberg said he will donate his kidney to a stranger next month. “I’ve been bitten by the blood donation bug,” he said. More than 100,000 people in the United States are on the organ transplant list, and approximately 12 people a day die due to organ shortages. “It’s essentially risk-free and therefore necessary,” Eisenberg said.

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