Dem Rep calls Trump admin ‘cruel’ for SNAP work requirements advocacy

Rep. Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass., claimed in a new interview that the Trump administration is being “cruel” by forcing SNAP beneficiaries to work to receive public assistance.

The shutdown began more than a month ago when Republicans and Democrats failed to agree on a continuing resolution (CR) to fund the government. The dispute arises from some health provisions. Democrats warn Americans’ health insurance premiums will rise if CR is not included; The GOP argues that this provision will provide health care to illegal immigrants.

The Trump administration reportedly agreed Monday to allocate billions of emergency dollars to partially fund SNAP benefits this month in response to a federal judge’s order. This comes amid a larger debate about SNAP programs and their beneficiaries, especially at a time when the Trump administration has alleged that such public funds are being misused by illegal immigrants.

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After watching a clip of Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins talking about the Trump administration’s plans to reform such programs, MSNBC condemned the administration and condemned the shutdown.

“I guess one way to stop people from fraudulently claiming benefits is to make sure no one can claim benefits, right?” journalist Catherine Rampell said on the Sunday episode of MSNBC’s “The Weekend: Primetime.”

“First of all, this is the most corrupt administration in history,” Pressley replied. “And then they are cruel enough to create working conditions so that hungry people can get SNAP.”

There was a significant debate about publish job requirements so that healthy people can receive public funds such as SNAP. In May, the House of Representatives included billions in cuts to food stamps, shifted food assistance program costs to the states and added stricter work requirements for the nutrition program to a mega-bill of President Donald Trump’s policy priorities.

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President Donald Trump blamed the shutdown on Democrats. (Andrew Leyden/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

Pressley continued to condemn Republicans in his comments on the MSNBC panel.

“But they didn’t show up for work last month and they were on a taxpayer-funded vacation. You know, I’ve been in Congress for seven years. I came in as a freshman in the 118th class in the middle of the government shutdown, the first congressional class to come in the middle of the government shutdown,” he said. “And we never left. We kept working. We kept negotiating because that’s what the American people deserve. It’s such a shame.”

Fox News Digital reached out to the White House but did not immediately receive a response.

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Rep. Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass. (Mariam Zuhaib, File/AP Photo)

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Fox News Digital’s Alex Miller contributed to this report.