Oh, SNAP

Today’s notice: The Trump administration refuses to SNAP to it. Back to reality on Capitol Hill. Forget 2026, the race for 2028 has already started. Plus: Sean Duffy’s “world-class stupid decision.”

THE LATEST

SNAP fight: “Obviously we have to find a way to comply” was what a senior Trump administration official first told Jasmine (with a sigh) an hour after federal Judge John McConnell Jr. ordered the government to issue full SNAP payments within 24 hours.

That’s not what happened. By Thursday evening, the USDA — the department that administers SNAP — made clear that it would appeal. JD Vance said it was an “absurd ruling.” OMB (which the White House was referring requests about this to) didn’t answer NOTUS’ request for comment about what happens next.

A sticky political situation: The White House has spent this shutdown saying it has been doing everything possible to mitigate harm from the shutdown (see: WIC and military pay) and simultaneously threatening to maximize pain (see: Donald Trump’s Truth Social post declaring no SNAP benefits until Democrats voted to open the government — the White House later clarified that the president’s statement didn’t include the initial court-ordered payments).

Judge McConnell accused the administration of not working quickly enough to disperse the funds. “The order to use contingency funds was not permissive, it was mandatory,” he said, adding that the administration had “arbitrarily and capriciously created this problem by ignoring the congressional mandate for contingency funds and failing to notify the states.”

The administration official reiterated the White House’s main talking point: “The truth is, there is not enough money in that fund.” (Remember, the USDA does have an additional pot of money for emergencies that the White House is declining to use.)

Is this really the legal fight Trump wants to be in right now? By the president’s own admission after Tuesday’s election losses, Republicans aren’t winning the shutdown fight. One issue organizers told NOTUS’ Jade Lozada resonated with voters this cycle: SNAP.

Open tabs: Jury Acquits Man Who Threw a Salami Sub at Feds in D.C. (NOTUS); DOJ Investigating D.C. Mayor Over Foreign Trip (NYT); Musk could become first trillionaire as Tesla shareholders approve pay package (AP); Trump pardons disgraced Tennessee politician and his former chief of staff (WSMV)

From the Hill

Back to reality: The elections Tuesday created some excitement on Capitol Hill. But after the hangovers wore off, lawmakers found themselves back where they started.

It’s “Groundhog Day” again. The Senate is planning on setting up another procedural vote on the CR today, but it’s not expected to move the needle on reopening the government.

Before election night, momentum was building for bipartisan talks. Now, less so, NOTUS’ Hill team reports.

This could be a working weekend for the Senate, which would suggest someone, somewhere believes a deal is nigh. But there’s still no indication of what that deal might look like. Welcome back to Earth, folks.

From the campaign trail

How much will 2025 affect 2028? “I mean, people who want to run, they’re always thinking about it, come on,” Sen. Ruben Gallego, one of those rumored to be thinking about it, told NOTUS’ Helen Huiskes. “My opinion is, it’s too far ahead. Democrats need to focus on winning 2026. I mean, the political environment in 2028 could be entirely different.”

Well, that’s no fun. Helen details how would-be 2028ers hit the road in 2025 to back candidates all over the ballot, and then reminded everyone about it after Tuesday. Sen. Chris Murphy touted his PAC’s support for Democrats who won in Georgia and Pennsylvania. (He, too, wasn’t interested in 2028 speculation.)

One guy can draw a straight line, though: “The Prop. 50 campaign gave him not just California exposure but national exposure,” Democratic strategist Adam Kinsey said of Gavin Newsom.

Everyone is deep in reflection after Tuesday. “I think that these candidates capitalized on the fact that this economy still is very, very tough for Hispanic voters across these states,” conservative Hispanic outreach strategist Abraham Enriquez told NOTUS’ Christa Dutton of how Democrats won back Trump’s non-white 2024 voters.

One tactic that didn’t play: “they/them” ads. “That was not the issue,” Sean Spicer told NOTUS’ Oriana González. American Principles Project’s Terry Schilling spent more than $2 million on anti-trans messaging this cycle. But he now suggests he never really expected it to work. “There were no surprises Tuesday night,” he told Oriana.

THE BIG ONE

Where is business booming? The companies that are supporting ICE’s exploding immigration enforcement operation.

“We’ve never seen anything like this before,” the founder of private prison company Geo Group, George Zoley, said on an earnings call yesterday.

The ICE machine, by the numbers: $682 million in revenue for Geo Group in this year’s third quarter and $580 million in revenue for CoreCivic, another private prison company, in the same period.

More $$: ICE paid tech company Palantir $51 million for software to help with criminal investigations and track self-deportations and visa overstays, according to an analysis of transaction history on USAspending by NOTUS’ Jackie Llanos. “We power ICE,” CEO Alex Karp boasted on the company’s earnings call this week.

NEW ON NOTUS

Sean Duffy takes a trip: The transportation secretary is set to headline a meet and greet for his son-in-law, Michael Alfonso, who is running for Congress in Wisconsin, but the White House did not approve the appearance, NOTUS’ Reese Gorman reports. Trump has yet to endorse a candidate in the race.

One source close to the White House told Reese it was a “world-class stupid decision” by Duffy.

“The secretary would be attending his son-in-law’s meet and greet in his personal capacity,” a DOT spokesperson said in a statement. “His presence does not reflect any official administration position or endorsement.”

AFGE’s victory lap: What did a year of DOGE and RIFs and Russ Vought (oh, my) mean for election volunteer recruitment and member GOTV efforts at the American Federation of Government Employees? “What I saw last week was Obama-era numbers,” AFGE’s lead Virginia political organizer, Herb Smith, told NOTUS’ Jade Lozada.

More: ‘Creepy’: Dems Weigh Ethics Complaint After GOP Senator Accessed Their Cars’ Safety Data, by Amelia Benavides-Colón

Senate Dems Urge Trump to Follow Court Order and Increase Abortion Pill Access, by Oriana González

ICE Doesn’t Notify Family Members When it Transfers Detainees. This Democrat Wants to Change That. By Manuela Silva

NOTUS PERSPECTIVES

The Washington Post Got 21,000 Emails After It Didn’t Endorse. I Read Them All. Alyssa Rosenberg, a former editor at the Post, on what she learned from reading and editing letters: That while Americans today have more opportunities than ever to speak, they have fewer opportunities than ever to be truly heard.

What is the single thing that has surprised you most about the second Trump administration? A NOTUS forum featuring Paul Dans, Gish Jen, Peniel Joseph, Donald Kettl, Sally Quinn, Philippe Reines, Cass Sunstein, Tanzina Vega, John Yoo and Kenji Yoshino.

NOT US

• How a flock of Canadian ostriches became a favorite MAHA cause, by Mickey Djuric for Politico
  
• Fierce backlash within GOP after Tucker Carlson gives White nationalist Nick Fuentes a platform, by Andrew Kaczynski and Steve Contorno for CNN
  
• Kash Patel’s Private Jet Problem Is Even Worse Than It Looks, by Will Sommer for The Bulwark

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