Scivillage.com Casual Discussion Science Forum

The U.S. Senate reached an agreement late Sunday to reopen the federal government after 40 days, the longest shutdown in U.S. history, by extending funding through January 2026 and providing full-year appropriations for defense and homeland security. The deal excludes immediate Affordable Care Act subsidy extensions, offering only a promised vote in mid-December. This split Democrats, with moderates like Tim Kaine and Dick Durbin supporting it to end economic disruptions while progressives including Bernie Sanders and Chuck Schumer opposed it.

It's basically the Republican CR (continuing resolution) that the House of Representatives and a majority of Senators already voted 'yes' on some 14 times previously. But due to Senate filibuster rules the Democrats were able to prevent the 'yes' vote from hitting the required sixty-vote supermajority, preventing the continuing resolution from passing and keeping the government closed.

They were trying to play hardball, demanding that they get their big-ticket wish-list items (which would total as much as a trillion dollars) or else the American people would get hurt. The obliging media like the New York Times played up that pain (by making SNAP a big issue etc.), but paradoxically that worked against them by increasing pressure on the Democrat Senators to pass the "clean" (no new spending above and beyond current spending) CR that would fund things like SNAP at the current rate.

So tonight they did the responsible thing.

Of course the misleadingly labeled "progressives" (as if 'progress' = 'left') aren't happy at all, feel that they have lost their leverage and will accuse the moderate Democrats who voted 'yes' of caving to the hated Trump.

I had a feeling it wouldn't last much beyond the election. They waited a whole five days.
Dems were never going to get their ridiculous demands. Republicans could just play their past statements on government shutdowns on repeat, and only the completely ignorant wouldn't see the obvious hypocrisy. Just children throwing a hissy fit because they didn't like what Republicans had already legally passed and didn't like that they put a sundown on their own COVID Obamacare subsidies. They demanded that Republicans support a failing Obamacare they didn't want in the first place... and predicted wouldn't help healthcare costs.

We'll see if they try the same stunt come January. Without a pending election, I doubt the "resistance" will be a crucial.

Quote:The obliging media like the New York Times played up that pain (by making SNAP a big issue etc.

If putting food on the table of 47 million Americans ISN'T a big issue, I don't know what is.

Statistics have shown that SNAP recipients spend more on groceries than people who pay themselves. They buy less nutritious and more expensive items, and they are more obese. Many threatened to steal if they didn't get free stuff, and many nail salons where talking about downsizing staff over the loss of customers.

So this justifies cutting off their benefits so they have no food for a month?

SNAP refugees were lined up at the local Food Bank during the shutdown. The church that set-up and operates it is quite efficient. Handing out generous sized boxes of items that fill the overall nutrient requirements.

Though it does get some supplies from the government, the vast majority of their stock comes from supermarkets, DG market, Walmart, etc. Soon to be expired frozen and packaged food that would otherwise have been tossed into garbage bins, along with non-expired cans that were slightly imperfect when manufactured (difficult to open with a manual, rotary edge can-opener).

One woman told me she got expensive multi-grained bread and other elite stuff that she otherwise would not have purchased under normal circumstances (due to the price). It was all in good condition along with the meat. She said the "fresh" fruit is more unpredictable -- sometimes in good shape, sometimes starting to rot a bit.

Our governor here in Oregon was smart. When the SNAP funds were initially released she made sure the payments went out to people right away. And so now it's too late to give them back. Fuck Trump and his MAGA court..

People deserve food, no matter who they are. Cheap food is usually unhealthy, unfortunately (cheap stores don't usually sell fresh fruits and veggies), but funding SNAP more generously could help people avoid buying unhealthy meals.

I'm glad the food banks and mutual aid is coming through for them, though! Maybe the GOP doesn't have a heart, but the people certainly do.

Democrats in the senate are the ONLY ONES who cut off SNAP funding.

Wrong. Trump went to the Supreme Court to get them cutoff. Thankfully Congress reached a deal instead and reopened the govt.