Healey: Mass. can't afford federal food aid cost shift
Healey wrote to leaders of the U.S. House Agriculture Committee contending that potential changes to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program would shift 'significant costs to states that they did not plan for and cannot afford.'
Depending upon the share of spending offloaded to states, Healey wrote that the proposal could cost Massachusetts between $185 million and $710 million per year, calling even the lower estimate 'an exorbitant burden.'
'These proposed changes would create an impossible situation for our most vulnerable families and residents. SNAP supports more than one million Massachusetts residents, one third of whom are elderly, one quarter of them are children, and a quarter of those who receive SNAP in our state have a disability,' Healey wrote. 'They receive a modest benefit, which averages about $10.70 per day per household. Beyond the direct benefits to families, SNAP is essential to the state's economy. Every dollar in SNAP benefits generates up to $1.50 in local economic activity, supporting thousands of Massachusetts jobs across many different industries, including farmers, grocers, manufacturers, delivery drivers, and other positions throughout the food supply chain.'
The U.S. House Agriculture Committee on Wednesday advanced a bill that could cut up to $300 billion in federal spending on SNAP.
Republicans in Congress are working to craft a massive domestic policy bill that would slash government spending in many areas in part to pay for extension of tax cuts President Donald Trump signed in his first term, which are set to expire at the end of the year.
MassHealth estimated that another portion of the package that moved through the U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee could result in Massachusetts losing more than $1 billion annually.
The potential loss of significant federal revenues may soon force Beacon Hill Democrats to reassess spending priorities and choose whether to come up with revenue to salvage programs, perhaps through new taxes or the use of rainy day reserves.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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Politico
11 minutes ago
- Politico
Thune's pre-recess game plan
IN TODAY'S EDITION:— Thune's 'minibus' dream for this week— Grassley's willing to cancel August recess— GOP blames Hamas as conditions in Gaza worsen Senators are racing the clock to make a dent in both the government funding process and President Donald Trump's backlog of nominees before heading home for August recess. Senate Majority Leader John Thune is hoping to get the first appropriations package through the chamber by the end of this week, with lawmakers on the hook for landing a deal to avoid a shutdown come Sept. 30. To that end, GOP leaders are negotiating with members of their conference over a 'minibus' of three bills that would, collectively, fund the departments of Commerce, Justice, Agriculture and Veterans Affairs, as well as key military construction projects and the FDA. Sen. John Kennedy's opposition to including legislation that would fund congressional operations will likely force leadership to postpone debating a fourth bill at this time. The pending package will require senators to run out two, 30-hour debate clocks; the ability to move faster will require buy-in from all 100 senators. It will also take time for lawmakers of both parties to agree on amendments and then hold votes, and Democrats are still deliberating their strategy, a person granted anonymity to share private negotiations tells Jordain. Republican leadership still believes it can pass the mini-bus before leaving town, according to a second person granted anonymity. But one potential fallback option, according to two people granted anonymity, could be for the Senate to schedule a final passage vote before they leave town for the first week back in September. Senate Republicans are also under pressure from Trump to confirm more of his nominees before heading home for recess. Thune has warned his members to prepare to vote at least through this weekend after the president urged senators to stay in Washington through August to wrap up the work, though many lawmakers aren't pleased with that idea. They're eager, instead, to get back to their home states, especially as they look to counter Democratic messaging against the freshly-passed GOP megabill. Other Senate Republicans say they're ready to give Trump what he's after. Over the weekend, Sen. Mike Lee repeatedly urged his colleagues to either work through August to advance nominations or cancel all pro-forma sessions over the next month to allow Trump to make recess appointments. 'The Senate can't have it both ways,' Lee said in a post on X. Senate Judiciary Chair Chuck Grassley also said he's on board with the president's call for the Senate to stick around to vote on nominations through August, writing on X, 'Trump needs his administration in place.' Republicans have typically been unenthused by the idea of recess appointments, though, and it's unlikely they'd go along with that plan. And while Thune is threatening to keep the Senate in session deeper into August, many lawmakers view it as just that: a threat to get Democrats to cut a deals on nominations to get out of town. 'I think it's fair to say that we're going keep the pressure on the Democrats to, you know, stay here until either they cooperate or we're just going to grind it out and do it the old fashioned way,' Thune told Jordain. GOOD MONDAY MORNING. Email us at mmccarthy@ jcarney@ crazor@ and bguggenheim@ Follow our live coverage at WHAT WE'RE WATCHINGWith help from Jordan Williams The House will meet for a pro forma session at 2 p.m. The Senate is in session and will vote to move forward with David Wright's nomination to be a Nuclear Regulatory Commission member at 5:30 p.m. Lawmakers will vote to confirm Wright and move forward with Earl Matthews' nomination to be DOD general counsel at 8 p.m. — Senate Agriculture will consider the nominations of Brian Quintenz to lead the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and Michael Boren to be under secretary of agriculture for Natural Resources and Environment at 5:30 p.m. The rest of the week: The Senate will continue marking up government funding bills and confirming the president's nominations. Pro subscribers receive this newsletter with a full congressional schedule and can browse our comprehensive calendar of markups, hearings and other notable events around Washington. Sign up for a demo. THE LEADERSHIP SUITE Johnson pans bipartisan push for a vote to release Epstein files Speaker Mike Johnson on Sunday criticized an ongoing effort from Reps. Thomas Massie and Ro Khanna that would force a House floor vote to compel the release of more files related to the charges against the deceased convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The bipartisan duo's proposal is 'reckless,' Johnson said on NBC's 'Meet the Press,' arguing it would force the DOJ and FBI to release information 'that was not even credible enough to be entered into the court proceedings.' He also said it wouldn't do enough to protect Epstein's victims. 'These are minors in many cases who were subjected to unspeakable crimes, abject evil,' Johnson said. 'They've already suffered great harm. We do not need their names being unmasked. The Massie and the Khanna [bill] ... does not have adequate protections.' 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The two lawmakers predict they will easily collect the 218 signatures required to circumvent leadership and force a floor vote on the matter upon the House's return from recess in September. Republicans blame Hamas as starvation conditions in Gaza worsen As the U.S. pulls out of ceasefire talks between Israel and Hamas and the humanitarian crisis in Gaza deepens, GOP leaders say Hamas' inability to cooperate is damaging any hopes of progress in the region. Last week, a U.N. World Food Programme official said about a quarter of the population in Gaza is facing famine-like conditions. Yet as global condemnation sharpens against the Israeli military's limit on aid routes, Trump and Republican leaders continue to insist Hamas is to blame for the fact that civilians, including children, are dying of hunger. 'People are stealing the food, they're stealing the money,' Trump told reporters Sunday. 'They're stealing weapons. That whole place is a mess… the Gaza Strip.' Johnson echoed those talking points on NBC: 'Israel, since this war began, has supplied over 94,000 truckloads full of food,' he said Sunday. 'But Hamas has stolen the food, a huge amount.' (The New York Times reported Saturday that the Israeli military has not found proof that Hamas has systematically stolen aid from the U.N.) The Israeli military on Sunday paused fighting in various population centers across Gaza to increase the delivery of humanitarian aid. Airdrops of aid have resumed. Still, some congressional Democratic leaders who have typically been mindful not to appear unsupportive of a longtime U.S. ally are sending dire warnings to Israel about the starvation crisis — and telling Trump his administration needs to take urgent action. 'The starvation and death of Palestinian children and civilians in an ongoing war zone is unacceptable,' House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said in a statement late Friday. 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RSC LAUNCHES TASK FORCE FOR SECOND MEGABILL — Republican Study Committee Chair August Pfluger on Friday announced the creation of the 'RSC Reconciliation 2.0 Working Group,' which will focus on crafting a policy framework for the next legislative package Republicans want to pass through the party-line budget reconciliation process. Pfluger touted the conservative coalition's role in driving down the deficit impact of the final version of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. GOP leaders and committee chairs in both chambers have indicated over the past month there is ample opportunity to legislate further in the arenas of tax, trade and particularly health care. But it's not yet clear what the broader political appetite will be to pursue a second partisan package after the intraparty strains the process put on Republicans the first time around this year. 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Roy Cooper seemingly announced his bid for Senate in North Carolina this past weekend at a Democratic state party dinner. 'Everybody who is planning to run for office next year, please stand up!' Cooper told the crowd on Saturday night — then added, to enthusiastic cheers from the audience, 'Hey, I'm not sitting down. Am I?' Democrats, who see North Carolina as one of the party's best opportunities in an otherwise challenging Senate midterm map, have been eagerly awaiting Cooper's decision about whether to run for the seat being vacated by retiring GOP Sen. Thom Tillis. Trump has endorsed RNC chair Michael Whatley on the Republican side. THE BEST OF THE REST Democrats Get More Vocal About 'Horrors Upon Horrors' in Gaza, from Brett Bachman at NOTUS Democratic candidates are posting weightlifting videos in search of a midterm lift, from David Wright at CNN JOB BOARD Joel Valdez is now acting deputy press secretary for the Pentagon. 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Send your answers to insidecongress@
New York Post
30 minutes ago
- New York Post
Epstein furor undermines public trust, Republican election hopes, two US lawmakers say
The uproar over disgraced financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein could undermine public trust in the Trump administration, as well as Republican hopes of retaining control of Congress in the 2026 midterm elections, two US lawmakers said on Sunday. Republican Representative Thomas Massie and Democratic Representative Ro Khanna, who want the House of Representatives to vote on their bipartisan resolution requiring full release of the government's Epstein files, said the lack of transparency is reinforcing public perceptions that the rich and powerful live beyond the reach of the judicial system. 'This is going to hurt Republicans in the midterms. The voters will be apathetic if we don't hold the rich and powerful accountable,' Massie, a hardline conservative from Kentucky, told NBC's 'Meet the Press' program. Advertisement 4 President Donald Trump at Trump Turnberry golf club in Turnberry, Scotland on July 27, 2025. Getty Images Republicans hope to add to their current 219-212 House majority – with four seats currently vacant – and 53-47 Senate majority in November 2026, although the US political cycle traditionally punishes the party of the sitting president during midterm elections. The Washington Post reported late on Sunday that Trump was increasingly frustrated with his administration's handling of the furor around Epstein. Advertisement Even so, the president was hesitant to make personnel changes to avoid creating a 'bigger spectacle' as his top officials underestimated the outrage from Trump's own base over the issue, the newspaper reported, citing unnamed sources. Khanna said Attorney General Pam Bondi triggered 'a crisis of trust' by saying there was no list of Epstein clients after previously implying that one existed. The change in position unleashed a tsunami of calls for her resignation from Trump's MAGA base. 'This is about trust in government,' the California Democrat told 'Meet the Press.' 'This is about being a reform agent of transparency.' Advertisement 4 The uproar over disgraced financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein could undermine public trust in the Trump administration. AP President Donald Trump, who on Sunday announced an EU trade deal in Scotland, has been frustrated by continued questions about his administration's handling of investigative files related to Epstein's criminal charges and 2019 death by suicide in prison. Massie and Khanna believe they can win enough support from fellow lawmakers to force a vote on their resolution when Congress returns from its summer recess in September. But they face opposition from Republican leaders including House Speaker Mike Johnson, who sent lawmakers home a day early to stymie Democratic efforts to force a vote before the break. Advertisement 4 A photo of the cell where Jeffrey Epstein committed suicide. CBS 60 MINUTES Johnson, who also appeared on NBC's 'Meet the Press,' said he favors a non-binding alternative resolution that calls for release of 'credible' evidence, but which he said would better protect victims including minors. 'The Massie and Khanna discharge petition is reckless in the way that it is drafted and presented,' Johnson said. 'It does not adequately include those protections.' Massie dismissed Johnson's claim as 'a straw man' excuse. 'Ro and I carefully crafted this legislation so that the victims' names will be redacted,' he said. 'They're hiding behind that.' Trump has tried and failed so far to distract attention from the Epstein controversy six months into his second term. 4 Trump shakes hands with US House Speaker Mike Johnson as he hosts a dinner with Republican members of the U.S. Congress in the East Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., on July 22, 2025. REUTERS On Saturday, Trump repeated his claims without evidence that 2024 Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris and other Democrats should be prosecuted over payment for endorsements from celebrities including Oprah Winfrey, Beyonce and the Reverend Al Sharpton. Last week he accused former President Barack Obama of 'treason' over how the Obama administration treated intelligence about Russian interference in US elections nine years ago, drawing a rebuke from an Obama spokesperson. Advertisement Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, a staunch Trump ally, said on Sunday that Tulsi Gabbard, Trump's director of national intelligence, had found new information that investigators initially discovered no evidence of Russian election interference but changed their position after Obama told them to keep looking. 'I'm not alleging he committed treason, but I am saying it bothers me,' Graham told 'Meet the Press.' Democratic Representative Jason Crow dismissed Gabbard's claims, telling the 'Fox News Sunday' program that the national intelligence director had turned herself into 'a weapon of mass distraction.' The Department of Justice has said it is forming a strike force to assess Gabbard's claims.
Newsweek
31 minutes ago
- Newsweek
MAGA Superintendent Ryan Walters Hits Out at Porn Claims
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. Oklahoma Superintendent Ryan Walters has hit back after colleagues alleged they saw images of nude women on a TV during a meeting in his office. Walters, a Republican, issued a statement on X on Sunday denying the claims as an investigation into the matter is reported to be underway. Newsweek has contacted Walters for comment. Why It Matters Walters has spoken out against showing what he deems to be "pornography" in schools and has pushed to remove books he says contain sexual content, including Khaled Hosseini's The Kite Runner. He also made headlines for his endorsements of pro-religious policies in Oklahoma's public schools, including putting Bibles that mimicked the "God Bless the USA Bibles" endorsed by President Donald Trump in 2024, into classrooms. State Superintendent Ryan Walters speaks to members of the State Board of Education at a meeting in Oklahoma City on August 24, 2023. State Superintendent Ryan Walters speaks to members of the State Board of Education at a meeting in Oklahoma City on August 24, 2023. Daniel Shular/Tulsa World via AP What To Know Two board members who attended the executive session of the Oklahoma State Board of Education on July 24, chaired by Walters, told The Oklahoman that images of naked women were displayed on a TV screen. The allegations came from Ryan Deatherage of Kingfisher and Becky Carson of Edmond, who described the ordeal as "really bizarre." The newspaper reported that it was not clear who was responsible for the alleged images, and that Deatherage said Walters was sitting with his back to the TV screen, so it wasn't in Walters' direct view. The superintendent allegedly turned off the TV after Carson alerted him to the matter. On X, Walters said the claims were "politically motivated attacks" as he is leading the charge for a "bold overhaul of education" in the state. "Any suggestion that a device of mine was used to stream inappropriate content on the television set is categorically false," he wrote, adding that there was "absolutely no truth" to the allegations. Earlier, in a statement to The Oklahoman, Quinton Hitchcock, a spokesperson for Walters, described the story as a "junk tabloid lie." "Any number of people have access to these offices. You have a hostile board who will say and do anything except tell the truth, and now, the Woklahoman is reporting on an alleged random TV cable image," he said, using a term for the newspaper often adopted by Walters. The closed meeting was being held to discuss teacher licensing, student attendance appeals and other sensitive issues, the newspaper reported. "I was like, 'Those are naked women,'" Carson told The Oklahoman. "And then I was like, 'No, wait a minute. Those aren't naked, surely those aren't naked women. Something is playing a trick on my eye. Maybe they just have on tan body suits. … This is just really bizarre.'" "I saw them just walking across the screen, and I'm like, 'no.' I'm sorry I even have to use this language, but I'm like, 'Those are her nipples,'" she continued. "And then I'm like, 'That's pubic hair.' What in the world am I watching? I didn't watch a second longer." What People Are Saying Oklahoma Superintendent Ryan Walters wrote on X: "As I lead the charge for a bold overhaul of education in Oklahoma, putting parents back in control, rejecting radical agendas, and demanding excellence: it's no surprise to face politically motivated attacks. "Any suggestion that a device of mine was used to stream inappropriate content on the television set is categorically false. I have no knowledge of what was on the TV screen during the alleged incident, and there is absolutely no truth to any implication of wrongdoing. "These falsehoods are the desperate tactics of a broken establishment afraid of real change. They aren't just attacking me, they're attacking the values of the Oklahomans who elected me to challenge the status quo. "I will not be distracted. My focus remains on making Oklahoma the best state in the nation, in every category." Board member Becky Carson said in a statement, according to KOCO 5 News: "I was appointed to the State Board of Education to serve Oklahoma students to the best of my ability. The images that board members were exposed to yesterday in this meeting were inappropriate to say the least. There has to be accountability." Board member Ryan Deatherage said in a statement, according to KOCO 5 News: "As an appointed member of the Oklahoma School Board, it is my top priority to protect the well-being of Oklahoma students. We hold educators to the strictest of standards when it comes to explicit material. The standard for the superintendent should be no different." What Happens Next An investigation is underway into the matter, according to reports.
