(Reuters) -The Trump administration asked a federal appeals court to block a judge’s order that the U.S. Department of Agriculture provide full November food stamp benefits to 42 million low-income Americans.

U.S. District Judge John McConnell in Providence, Rhode Island, on Thursday ordered the payout by Friday, accusing the administration of withholding Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, benefits for political reasons with the government shutdown now more than a month old.

The Department of Justice in a filing on Friday with the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston said McConnell had no authority to order the payout, saying judges have no power to appropriate or spend federal money.

“There is no lawful basis for an order that directs USDA to somehow find $4 bil

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