A federal judge in Rhode Island on Friday (October 31, 2025) blocked President Donald Trump’s administration from suspending all food aid for millions of Americans amid the ongoing government shutdown and directed it to use contingency funds to pay for the benefits.

U.S. District Judge John McConnell in Providence issued a temporary restraining order at the behest of cities, nonprofits and a union that argued the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s suspension of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits, known as SNAP or food stamps, starting Saturday was unlawful.

He ruled from the bench minutes after another judge in Boston ruled that suspension was likely unlawful in a related case pursued by a coalition of Democratic-led states that also sought to avert the suspension.

“There

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