Latest news with #LetitiaJames
New York Times
2 days ago
- Politics
- New York Times
States Sue Trump Administration Over Efforts to Get Food Stamp Data
A coalition of 21 states and Washington, D.C., sued the Trump administration on Monday, seeking to block a Department of Agriculture demand that states surrender sensitive personal information about millions of food stamp recipients. The lawsuit, filed in federal court in San Francisco, argues that the federal government's demand violates federal privacy laws and the U.S. Constitution. It appears to be part of a coordinated effort to collect information that can be used to 'advance the president's agenda on fronts that are wholly unrelated to SNAP program administration,' including immigration enforcement, the lawsuit says. 'We will not allow this lifesaving program to be illegally used to hunt down immigrants and their families,' Attorney General Letitia James of New York said at a news conference on Monday announcing the lawsuit, appearing with the attorneys general of California and Michigan. All three are Democrats. 'This administration cannot intimidate vulnerable families and prevent them from putting food on the table,' Ms. James added. The Agriculture Department said in May that it planned to create a database of Americans who receive nutrition benefits through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, which serves about 42 million people. The federal government pays for the benefits and shares the administrative costs with the states. But after a coalition of public interest groups and people receiving SNAP benefits sued in May in Washington to block the government from collecting the information on recipients, largely on privacy grounds, the Agriculture Department said it would pause the plan until it could 'ensure that data received would be appropriately safeguarded' and would satisfy legal requirements. That lawsuit is still pending. The lawsuit filed Monday asks the court to find the department's demand for the data unlawful and to prevent the administration from conditioning receipt of SNAP funding on compliance by states. It also asks the court to declare that the administration cannot disclose the requested SNAP data to the so-called Department of Government Efficiency or the Department of Homeland Security for any purpose other than administering the SNAP program. The Agriculture Department declined to comment on the lawsuit. The department has said the new policy is designed to help implement an executive order Mr. Trump signed in March, ostensibly focused on streamlining federal databases and minimizing barriers between agencies and between state and federal governments. It has argued in court that the requirement is necessary to administer the program more effectively, as states play a major role overseeing the day-to-day distribution of benefits. Rob Bonta, California's attorney general, said at the news conference Monday that the administration's demand that states turn over personal sensitive data such as names, Social Security numbers and home addresses — even for people who applied years ago — was 'a bait and switch of the worst kind.' 'This isn't about oversight and transparency,' Mr. Bonta added. 'This is about establishing widespread surveillance under the guise of fighting fraud. We can call it what it is: an illegal data grab designed to scare people away from public assistance programs.' The lawsuit pending in Washington argues that the information the government has traditionally collected on SNAP recipients is for largely administrative purposes such as confirming eligibility, and that the new reporting requirements violate the spirit and purpose of the laws governing that data collection. The new case filed on Monday appeared to go further by pointing out the potential for abuse if newly collected data was shared outside the Agriculture Department or used for tracking and immigration enforcement. Those concerns have been compounded by evidence that the Trump administration, with the assistance of Elon Musk and DOGE, have already taken steps to merge highly specialized databases at different agencies with the goal of hastening deportations. This year, the Trump administration cemented an interagency agreement to provide taxpayer data housed at the Internal Revenue Service to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, resulting in the resignation of several senior I.R.S. officials. According to reporting by ProPublica, the I.R.S. is also building infrastructure to supply details within that data, such as home addresses, to Homeland Security officials on demand. In June, the Supreme Court also allowed DOGE to proceed in reviewing personal data held by the Social Security Administration, with minimal restrictions on how that data might be used. In addition to New York, California, Michigan and Washington, D.C., the other plaintiffs in the lawsuit announced Monday are Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Washington and Wisconsin.
CBS News
3 days ago
- Politics
- CBS News
Weaponization of SNAP benefits to target undocumented immigrants at heart of lawsuit led by New York's Letitia James
New York Attorney General Letitia James is leading a coalition of officials from across the country to beat back what it says is the targeting of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. Members of the coalition say it's the latest attempt by the Trump administration to weaponize federal aid to attack undocumented immigrants. James, along with the attorneys general from California and Michigan, have filed a lawsuit on behalf of officials in 22 states. New Jersey joined on behalf of its more than 824,000 SNAP recipients. "This administration is attempting to use this program as a tool in their cruel and chaotic targeting of immigrants. It is outrageous. It is unacceptable," James said. The suit, which was filed in the Northern District of California, challenges what officials say is a new requirement that low-income families turn over a raft of personal information, including immigration status for the past five years, in order to get benefits. James says it's illegal and is being, "illegally used to hunt down immigrants and their families." The coalition is seeking a court judgment to declare the policy illegal and prevent its enforcement. More than 40 million people nationwide rely on SNAP benefits including 2.9 million in New York. Of those, 1.8 million are in New York City. They received $7.35 billion in assistance last year, with benefits ranging from $292 per month for one person up to $1,756 for a household of eight. Under the program, immigrants who are citizens can receive SNAP benefits and non citizens can apply for SNAP benefits for their children who are born here and have birthright citizenship. Immigrants rights experts say it's another attempt at expanded surveillance. "They're trying to utilize every single federal data base to further their mass family separation and mass deportation agenda -- those who are here lawfully, as well as those who have fallen out of state, to target them for enforcement," said Murad Awawdeh, president and CEO of the New York Immigration Coalition. Asked about the suit, a spokesperson for the Department of Justice issued a terse, "No comment."
Fox News
3 days ago
- Politics
- Fox News
Retired NYPD inspector calls NYC's level of 'scammery' over SNAP benefits 'mind-numbing'
Fox News contributor Paul Mauro weighs in on New York Attorney General Letitia James' latest lawsuit against the Trump administration on 'The Story.'
Fox News
3 days ago
- Politics
- Fox News
'Dangerous and illegal': Democrat AGs sue Trump over effort to use SNAP to locate migrants
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Monday said she is helping lead a group of 20 Democratic attorneys general in suing the Trump administration over its demands that they turn over information about food stamp recipients and applicants in their state—an effort she excoriated as a "dangerous and illegal overreach" by the administration to unlawfully locate and track down illegal immigrants. The lawsuit, led by James, California Attorney General Rob Bonta, and Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, comes after the Trump administration demanded states turn over detailed personal information related to recipients and applicants of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, before July 30. The Trump administration has threatened to withhold SNAP funding from states who fail to comply with the July 30 deadline—teeing up a high-stakes, eleventh-hour court clash between Trump officials and leaders from 20 Democratic-led states. Speaking to reporters on a press call Monday, James and other attorneys general took umbrage with the new SNAP data-sharing requirement, describing it as an "illegal data grab" designed to intimidate vulnerable communities and help track down migrants who might be subject to deportation. "This administration is attempting to use this program as a tool in their cruel and chaotic targeting of immigrants," James said. The lawsuit is not the first time James, a longtime Trump foe, has sparred with Trump in court since the start of his second presidential term. To date, she's joined Democratic attorneys general in more than a dozen other lawsuits challenging his early actions. Bonta, for his part, described the USDA's new demands as a cruel bait-and-switch from the Trump administration. He noted that the data the administration is allegedly attempting to mine comes from a decades-old aid program designed to help ensure that low-income families have access to food. "SNAP recipients provided this information to get help to feed their families—not to be entered into a government surveillance database, or be used as targets for the president's inhumane immigration agenda," Bonta said on Tuesday. "This kind of targeting doesn't make America safer. It threatens kids' access to school meals, it jeopardizes wildfire survivors' access to relief," he added. "And it sends a chilling message: if you reach out for help, you may be punished for it." The trio also rejected the assertion that USDA's request for the additional SNAP data, first announced in March, was made under the guise of helping eliminate "waste and fraud" within the federal government—noting that the SNAP program historically has "very low rates of fraud." Rather, the Democratic attorneys general described the demand for information as a "flat-out illegal" attempt by the Trump administration to unlawfully obtain personal information about immigrants living in their states. They noted that, in addition to threatening to withhold SNAP funds, Trump officials have expanded the amount of data that states are required to submit about the individuals in the program. The new USDA demands, released last week, require states to provide a list of individuals who have applied or are currently receiving SNAP benefits, in addition to other information such as a list of their immigration statuses in the U.S., and information including their marital statuses, their residential and mailing addresses, and education and employment history, among other things. Each of the attorneys general said Monday that the program would require them to share the personal information of millions of residents in their states, dating back to 2020, and bypassing federal laws that dictate how such information can be used. "This is not for research," James said. "They are basically trying to weaponize the SNAP program against immigrant communities, in violation of the law." California Attorney General Rob Bonta, for his part, described the push by the administration as an attempt to "hunt down" and obtain personal information for millions of residents in their states. "They're bypassing legal procedures, ignoring privacy protections, and demanding data that federal law explicitly says can only be used for administering the SNAP program," Bonta said, noting that they "ignored hundreds of public comments pointing out major flaws in the government's plans." The lawsuit comes as James and other Democratic-led states have taken aim at Trump's sweeping policy goals and executive orders in court, which they describe as excessive and unconstitutional. Since his inauguration in January, Bonta noted, Democrat-led states have filed 35 lawsuits against the Trump administration. Bonta said Monday that the USDA requirement is a "clear violation" of the "Spending Clause, federal privacy statutes, and the USDA's own authority," prompting them to file suit. "President Trump made promises to the American people and now he's breaking them," the group said Monday. "He's rewriting the rules, targeting the most vulnerable and expecting states to fall in line."
New York Post
5 days ago
- Politics
- New York Post
Letitia James Gaza letter failed to mention Hamas — until New York Post called
New York State Attorney General Letitia James quietly circulated a petition Saturday to other Democrats pushing an end to the 'humanitarian catastrophe' in Gaza that failed to mention Hamas — until The Post came calling. An early draft of the petition circulated to multiple elected officials and obtained by The Post did not condemn Hamas terrorists for the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. 'We are united in this moment by a truth we can no longer ignore: a famine is unfolding in Gaza before the eyes of the world,' according to the draft, which claimed to be on behalf of a 'coalition of multiracial, multiethnic, and multifaith elected officials.' New York State Attorney General Letitia James quietly circulated a petition Saturday to other Democrats pushing an end to the 'humanitarian catastrophe' in Gaza that failed to mention Hamas terrorist's role in the crisis — until The Post came calling. KEVIN C DOWNS 'There is no denying it—we are witnessing a humanitarian catastrophe …' the petition added. 'We urge our fellow Americans to speak out, to support relief efforts, and to demand that our leaders use every tool of diplomacy to end this crisis. History will remember what we did, or failed to do, in this moment.' James' office initially declined to comment on Saturday when The Post reached out about the original draft of the letter. Hours later, the AG's office sent out a news release with a new version of the letter calling for 'immediate' aid to Gaza — and condemning the terrorist group. 'We are united in this moment by both condemning the October 7th massacre perpetrated by Hamas and an unavoidable truth: a famine is unfolding in Gaza before the eyes of the world.' An early draft of the petition circulated to multiple elected officials and obtained by The Post did not condemn Hamas terrorists for the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. AP More than 60 Democratic federal, state and city elected officials signed onto the petition, including Rep. Jerold Nadler and NYC Comptroller Brad Lander. Anti-Israel Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani, a Queens socialist who James is endorsing in November's NYC mayoral election, was not among the letter's signatories but is vacationing in Uganda through the end of the month. Councilwoman Inna Vernikov (D-Brooklyn) ripped the original draft of the letter through a spokesperson. 'New York is being run by a cabal of leftist Hamas apologists who would rather shield terrorists than speak the truth,' Vernikov's rep said. 'Any acknowledgment of a humanitarian crisis without addressing its cause — a terrorist regime that uses civilians as human shields — is dishonest. Ignoring that reality isn't compassion; it's complicity,' the spokesperson added. State Assemblyman Charles Fall, a Democrat representing parts of Staten Island, and Brooklyn and Lower Manhattan, told The Post he signed on to the letter because the Gaza crisis is a 'humanitarian issue.' 'People are hurting, starving. Think about the kids,' said Fall, who has two daughters, ages 6 and 11. 'The letter is balanced. It talks about the hostages.'
