House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., is remaining quiet on the New York City mayoral race, despite his self-imposed deadline of weighing in before early voting fast approaches on Saturday morning.

The top House Democrat was asked multiple times about Democratic socialist candidate Zohran Mamdani, and whether he will endorse him, during a press conference at the U.S. Capitol on Friday.

Jeffries has said multiple times that he would speak about the race before early voting begins in New York City — which is coming at 9 a.m. ET on Saturday.

‘Stay tuned,’ he told one reporter when asked if he was ready to endorse Mamdani.

He was asked about Mamdani again a short while later, when a reporter queried, ‘Why are you refusing to endorse?’

‘I have not refused to endorse. I have refused to articulate my position, and I will momentarily, at some point in advance of early voting,’ Jeffries said.

A third reporter asked Jeffries whether he believed his refusal to endorse was ‘splitting the Democratic Party.’

‘I traveled throughout the country, and the Democratic Party is as unified as I’ve seen us throughout the entirety of this year, and you’re about to experience that in real time. So it won’t be hypothetical. You’re about to see it in real time in Virginia, in New Jersey, and in California as it relates to prop 50,’ Jeffries said, without mentioning his home state of New York.

‘As I’ve said, I will have more to say about the mayor’s race when I have more to say about the mayor’s race in advance of early voting, when I’m back home tomorrow.’

Fox News Digital then asked why Jeffries was waiting until the 11th hour to weigh in on the race, to which he tersely responded, ‘This question has been asked and answered repeatedly.’

Notably, Jeffries would not have been able to make his endorsement at the press conference. Lawmakers are barred from making political statements or solicitations on Capitol grounds.

Mamdani is the current frontrunner in the race between himself, Republican Curtis Sliwa, and former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who is running as an Independent.

While he’s gained support from progressives in Congress, including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., the top two Democrats on Capitol Hill — Jeffries and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. — have been silent.

Politico reported on Friday afternoon that Jeffries would endorse Mamdani later Friday.

The State Department has spent nearly $100 million less on travel this year than last amid a wider effort to trim budgets, according to documents exclusively obtained by Fox News Digital.

From January to September 2024, the Biden administration State Department spent $306 million on foreign and domestic travel. At the same point this year, the department under President Donald Trump spent $212 million, according to documents seen by Fox News Digital.

Some $37 million in cuts was focused on domestic travel, largely driven by a decrease in conference attendance, which made up nearly $7 million of the cuts.

Site visits and consultations within the U.S. also decreased by around $14 million and domestic special mission travel was down around $5.5 million.

Overseas travel decreased from $206 million from January-September 2024 to $149 million.

Site visits and consultations overseas were down around $12.5 million and travel for training was down around $15 million.

‘The Trump Administration has consistently been on the side of the American people and the American taxpayer, and these numbers prove that,’ principal deputy spokesperson Tommy Piggot said.

‘We believe in real diplomacy, not meetings for the sake of meetings.’

This travel-spending decline comes amid a broader effort by the Trump administration to shrink the department’s footprint and reduce overseas commitments. In April 2025, the Office of Management and Budget wrote a memo recommending the combined budget of the State Department and USAID be cut nearly in half in the upcoming fiscal year.

The plan would reduce the budget from about $55 billion to $28.4 billion, slash funding for humanitarian assistance and global health programs by more than 50%, and potentially shut down or significantly scale back dozens of U.S. missions abroad.

And as of July, the department had initiated layoffs of over 1,300 domestic staff.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who arrived in Israel shortly after Vice President JD Vance left for Washington, railed against the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) amid the U.S.-brokered ceasefire.

‘UNRWA’s not going to play any role in it,’ Rubio said when asked about whether the controversial agency would assist in delivering humanitarian aid to Gaza. ‘The United Nations is here. They’re on the ground. We’re willing to work with them if they can make it work, but not UNRWA. UNRWA became a subsidiary of Hamas.’

UNRWA demanded in a post on X that it be allowed to do work in Gaza.

‘As the largest U.N. agency operating in the Gaza Strip, by far, UNRWA has an unparalleled logistical network, longstanding trust from the community, managing the distribution of supplies based on vulnerability and clear criteria. Our teams are ready, inside and outside Gaza. Let us work,’ the agency wrote.

On Oct. 17, days after world leaders backed a U.S.-brokered ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) opened a Civil-Military Coordination Center (CMCC), which is where Rubio spoke on Friday.

The CMCC is located in southern Israel and will serve as the main hub for Gaza stabilization efforts. It will also oversee implementation of the ceasefire agreement and has an operations floor designed to track real-time developments in Gaza.

During the U.N. General Assembly (UNGA) last month, U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres spoke at a meeting in support of UNRWA, saying that the agency has ‘made invaluable contributions to development, human rights, humanitarian action, and peace and security, including for Israel.’

‘UNRWA is vital to any prospects for peace and stability in the region,’ Guterres added.

However, the U.S. and Israel have taken hard stances against the agency, particularly in the wake of the Oct. 7, 2023, massacre.

President Donald Trump in February reaffirmed the U.S.’s commitment to not fund UNRWA. 

In the executive order, Trump said that ‘UNRWA has reportedly been infiltrated by members of groups long designated by the Secretary of State as foreign terrorist organizations, and UNRWA employees were involved in the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel.’

In April 2025, when the International Court of Justice (ICJ) demanded Israel work with UNRWA, Washington backed Jerusalem, saying it was under no obligation to work with the agency and had ‘ample grounds to question UNRWA’s impartiality.’

UNRWA announced in August 2024 the end of an investigation by the Office of Internal Oversight Services into whether its staff participated in the attacks, as Israel claimed. Following the probe, which looked into 19 UNRWA staff members, nine staff members were fired over evidence that ‘could indicate’ they were involved in the attacks.

The investigation found one case in which there was no evidence to confirm the staffer’s involvement and nine other cases in which ‘the evidence obtained by OIOS was insufficient’ to prove their participation, according to UNRWA.

Fox News Digital reached out to UNRWA and Israel’s mission to the U.N. for comment.

Fox News Digital’s Alexandra Koch contributed to this report.

A federal judge struck down a Biden-era rule that expanded federal anti-discrimination measures to transgender healthcare, writing that the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ‘exceeded its authority by implementing regulations redefining sex discrimination and prohibiting gender identity discrimination.’

The ruling from Judge Louis Guirola Jr. of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi came after a coalition of 15 Republican-led states sued over the matter, according to The Hill.

‘When Biden-era bureaucrats tried to illegally rewrite our laws to force radical gender ideology into every corner of American healthcare, Tennessee stood strong and stopped them,’ Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti said in a statement following the ruling. ‘Our fifteen-state coalition worked together to protect the right of healthcare providers across America to make decisions based on evidence, reason, and conscience.’

‘This decision restores not just common sense but also constitutional limits on federal overreach, and I am proud of the team of excellent attorneys who fought this through to the finish,’ he added.

Skrmetti’s office said the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi held that HHS ‘exceeded its authority when it issued a rule in May 2024 redefining Title IX’s prohibition against discrimination ‘on the basis of sex’ — which Congress incorporated into the ACA through Section 1557 — to include gender identity.’

‘HHS’s 2024 rule represented a disturbing federal intrusion into the States’ traditional authority to regulate healthcare and make decisions about their own Medicaid programs. Specifically, the rule would have prohibited healthcare facilities from maintaining sex-segregated spaces, required certain healthcare providers to administer unproven and risky procedures for gender dysphoria, and forced states to subsidize those experimental treatments through their Medicaid programs,’ it continued. ‘In vacating the rule, Judge Louis Guirola determined that when Congress passed Title IX in 1972, ‘sex’ meant biological sex and that federal agencies cannot unilaterally rewrite laws decades later to advance political agendas.’

The states involved in the lawsuit were Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Virginia, and West Virginia.

The rule was first created under the administration of former President Barack Obama in 2016, before President Donald Trump reversed it in his first term and then former President Joe Biden reversed it again, The Hill reported. 

Guirola’s ruling said HHS ‘exceeded its authority by implementing regulations redefining sex discrimination and prohibiting gender identity discrimination.’ 

The judge vacated the rule universally, but the rule had already been prevented from going into effect. It has been stayed since July 2024, according to Bloomberg Law. 

Two federal judges admitted that members of their staff used artificial intelligence to prepare court orders over the summer that contained errors.

The admissions, which came from U.S. District Judge Julien Xavier Neals in New Jersey and U.S. District Judge Henry Wingate in Mississippi, came in response to an inquiry by Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, who chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Grassley described the recent court orders as ‘error-ridden.’

In letters released by Grassley’s office on Thursday, the judges said the rulings in the cases, which were not connected, did not go through their chambers’ usual review processes before they were released.

The judges both said they have since adopted measures to improve how rulings are reviewed before they are posted.

Neals said in his letter that a June 30 draft decision in a securities lawsuit ‘was released in error – human error – and withdrawn as soon as it was brought to the attention of my chambers.’

The judge said a law school intern used OpenAI’s ChatGPT to perform legal research without authorization or disclosure that he also said was contrary to the chamber’s policy and relevant law school policy.

‘My chamber’s policy prohibits the use of GenAI in the legal research for, or drafting of, opinions or orders,’ Neals wrote. ‘In the past, my policy was communicated verbally to chamber’s staff, including interns. That is no longer the case. I now have a written unequivocal policy that applies to all law clerks and interns.’

Wingate said in his letter that a law clerk used Perplexity ‘as a foundational drafting assistant to synthesize publicly available information on the docket,’ adding that releasing the July 20 draft decision ‘was a lapse in human oversight.’

‘This was a mistake. I have taken steps in my chambers to ensure this mistake will not happen again,’ the judge wrote.

Wingate had removed and replaced the original order in the civil rights lawsuit, declining at the time to give an explanation but saying it contained ‘clerical errors.’

Grassley had requested that the judges explain whether AI was used in the decisions after lawyers in the respective cases raised concerns about factual inaccuracies and other serious errors.

‘Honesty is always the best policy. I commend Judges Wingate and Neals for acknowledging their mistakes and I’m glad to hear they’re working to make sure this doesn’t happen again,’ Grassley said in a statement.

‘Each federal judge, and the judiciary as an institution, has an obligation to ensure the use of generative AI does not violate litigants’ rights or prevent fair treatment under the law,’ the senator continued. ‘The judicial branch needs to develop more decisive, meaningful and permanent AI policies and guidelines. We can’t allow laziness, apathy or overreliance on artificial assistance to upend the Judiciary’s commitment to integrity and factual accuracy. As always, my oversight will continue.’

Lawyers have also faced scrutiny from judges across the country over accusations of AI misuse in court filings. In response, judges have issued fines or other sanctions in several cases over the past few years.

Reuters contributed to this report.

Mayor Eric Adams formally endorsed former Gov. Andrew Cuomo to replace him as the next mayor of New York City on Thursday, less than one month after Adams suspended his re-election campaign.

The endorsement followed Wednesday night’s final mayoral debate, where Cuomo, who is running as an Independent, faced off against Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani and Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa. Rather than speak to reporters after the debate, Cuomo dashed off to Madison Square Garden to watch the end of the New York Knicks game courtside with Adams.

‘I’m fighting for the family of New York,’ Adams said. ‘That’s why I’m here today, to endorse Andrew Cuomo, to be part of this fight, and I’m going to give him my all these next few days to make sure that Black and Brown communities, specifically, who have believed there’s nothing at stake in this election for them. It is.’

‘Am I angry that I’m not the one taking down Zohran, the socialist and the communist?’ Adams said, eliciting President Donald Trump’s moniker for Mamdani. ‘You’re darn right I am. But, you know what, the city means more to me than anything, and it is time for us as a family to come together.’

‘Today confirms what we’ve long known: Andrew Cuomo is running for Eric Adams’ second term,’ Mamdani said in a statement Thursday. ‘It’s no surprise to see two men who share an affinity for corruption and Trump capitulation align themselves at the behest of the billionaire class and the president himself. We are going to turn the page on the politics of big money and small ideas that these two disgraced executives embody and build a city every New Yorker can afford.’

Mamdani reiterated his criticism of the endorsement during a campaign event in Manhattan on Thursday.

‘We also know that this is the art of the deal,’ Mamdani said before adding, ‘We know that in a moment when New Yorkers are looking for an answer to the authoritarianism that we’re seeing from Washington, D.C., they don’t want the continuation of making City Hall into an embassy of that same administration.’

Adams has aligned with Trump since he was elected in November, visiting both Mar-a-Lago and the White House. Trump’s Justice Department dropped bribery, wire fraud and conspiracy charges against Adams earlier this year. 

Gov. Kathy Hochul, D-N.Y., weighed removing Adams from office following a slew of City Hall resignations after Adams’ case was dropped. Hochul has since endorsed Mamdani’s campaign, although Mamdani has yet to endorse Hochul’s re-election campaign. 

Pressure had been mounting since Mamdani won the Democratic primary for Adams or Cuomo to drop out of the race to consolidate support against Mamdani.

‘The mayor put his own personal ambition and ego aside to make sure he’s doing everything he can to make sure that New York remains New York,’ Cuomo said Thursday.

Adams announced he was suspending his campaign in a video on Sunday, Sept. 28, prompting the leading mayoral candidates to sharpen their political jabs against each other.

Similar pressure from billionaires, including Red Apple Media CEO John Catsimatidis and hedge fund CEO Bill Ackman, has intensified this week for Sliwa to drop out of the race in order to clear a pathway to victory for Cuomo.

The Democratic nominee, who handily defeated Cuomo in the primary, elicited Adams’ own words against the former governor in the days after he suspended his re-election campaign.

‘Even hearing Eric Adams, the way that he described Andrew Cuomo as a snake and a liar, is something that I’ve heard from a number of New Yorkers in wanting to turn that page,’ Mamdani said.

While Adams and Cuomo have had their fair share of disagreements, the Democrats agreed on Thursday that Mamdani should not become the next mayor of New York City. Adams addressed his own criticism of Adams during the announcement Thursday. 

‘He called me names. But you know what? Now it’s time to fight for the family, and I’m going to fight for the family with Andrew Cuomo as the next mayor of the city of New York,’ Adams said. 

The latest Fox News survey, conducted Oct. 10-14, ahead of the first general election debate last week, revealed that Mamdani has a substantial lead in the race. According to the poll, Mamdani has a 21-point lead among New York City registered voters with 49% of voters backing Mamdani, while 28% go for Cuomo and 13% favor Sliwa.

Mamdani also rose above the 50% threshold among likely voters, garnering 52% support, while Cuomo picked up 28%, and Sliwa received just 14%.

But as Mamdani, ever the social media-savvy candidate, warned his followers on Wednesday, it was Cuomo who was the favorite to win the nomination just weeks before the Democratic primary.

By consolidating support with New York City Comptroller Brad Lander, and cross-endorsing each other to topple Cuomo through ranked-choice voting, Mamdani pulled off the political upset that has since landed him on the national stage.

President Donald Trump called off his meeting in Budapest, Hungary, with Russian President Vladimir Putin because he didn’t see enough progress toward peace — although a future summit hasn’t been ruled out, according to the White House. 

While Trump and Putin spoke over the phone Oct. 16, plans for the meeting were scrapped after Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s call with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov Tuesday.

Trump ‘feels as though, unfortunately, from the Russian side as of late, he has not seen enough interest in enough action in terms of moving the ball forward toward peace,’ White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters Thursday. ‘And so a meeting between these two leaders is not completely off the table. I think the president and the entire administration hopes that one day that can happen again, but we want to make sure that there’s a tangible positive outcome out of that meeting, and that it’s a good use of the president’s time.’ 

Trump also has signaled in recent days that his patience has worn thin with Russia, and his administration slapped stringent sanctions on Russia’s two largest oil companies Wednesday. 

Specifically, the sanctions freeze all U.S.-linked assets from the two companies and bar U.S. citizens from engaging in any business with them. 

In response, Putin called the sanctions an ‘unfriendly act,’ and warned that global oil prices could increase as a result. However, he also said that the sanctions would not majorly impact Moscow’s economy. 

While Trump routinely has said in recent months that he has pleasant conversations with Putin, he’s also voiced frustration at the lack of progress made as he’s sought to mediate an end to the conflict. Trump also said Tuesday that he didn’t want to have a ‘wasted meeting’ with Putin in Hungary. 

‘The president wants to see action, not just talk,’ Leavitt said. ‘And I think the president is extremely motivated by the success of his peace deal in the Middle East to get things done, and he wants this war to come to an end. He’s been saying it now for nine months, being in office, and he’s grown increasingly frustrated with the lack of progress from both sides of this war.’ 

Trump met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy Friday, and NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte Wednesday to address ongoing negotiations to end the conflict. 

On Wednesday, Trump told reporters the meeting with Putin ‘didn’t feel right,’ and explained why he wasn’t interested in arming Ukraine with Tomahawk missiles like he’d previously suggested he might. 

‘There is a tremendous learning curve with the Tomahawk. It’s a very powerful weapon, very accurate weapon,’ Trump said Wednesday. ‘And maybe that’s what makes it so complex. But it will take a year. It takes a year of intense training to learn how to use it, and we know how to use it. And we’re not going to be teaching other people. It will be just too far out into the future.’

Meanwhile, Trump has voiced skepticism recently about whether Ukraine can win against Russia.

‘They could still win it. I don’t think they will, but they could still win it,’ Trump told reporters Monday.

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

President Donald Trump is ‘not interested’ in making peace with Colombian President Gustavo Petro, the White House said Thursday, as tensions between Washington and Bogotá continue to escalate.

‘I don’t think we’re seeing de-escalation from the unhinged leader of Colombia right now,’ press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters during a White House briefing when asked what Petro could do to reduce tensions.

‘I don’t think the president, frankly, is interested in that at this point,’ Leavitt added.

Relations between the two countries have sharply deteriorated after Petro accused the U.S. of killing innocent fishermen during strikes targeting narco-traffickers in the Caribbean.

Following Petro’s accusation, Trump announced plans to cut off all counter-narcotics aid to Colombia and impose new tariffs on the country.

Trump lashed out at his South American counterpart, calling him a ‘thug’ who is ‘making a lot of drugs.’

‘They’re doing very poorly, Colombia. They make cocaine. They have cocaine factories … and he better watch it or we’ll take very serious action against him and his country,’ Trump said. ‘What he has led his country into is a death trap.’

Petro fired back, threatening to sue Trump in U.S. court.

‘From the slanders that have been cast against me in the territory of the United States by high-ranking officials, I will defend myself judicially with American lawyers in the American justice system,’ Petro wrote on X. ‘I will always stand against genocides and murders by those in power in the Caribbean.’

‘When our help is required to fight against drug trafficking, American society will have it. We will fight against the drug traffickers with the states that want our help,’ he added.

Petro has sought closer ties with Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro while distancing Colombia — a major non-NATO ally — from the United States.

Meanwhile, the U.S. has conducted eight strikes on vessels believed to be transporting narcotics from Latin America. The world is now watching to see whether Trump will follow through on threats to strike Venezuelan soil — or even target Maduro himself, directly or indirectly.

Trump confirmed that he had authorized the CIA to conduct covert operations inside Venezuela and also warned Colombia could face similar consequences.

‘Petro, a low rated and very unpopular leader, with a fresh mouth toward America, better close up these killing fields immediately,’ Trump wrote on Truth Social, ‘or the United States will close them up for him, and it won’t be done nicely.’

In a statement to Fox News Digital, the Colombian Embassy in Washington sought to ease tensions, saying the U.S. representative in Bogotá recently met with Petro and that ‘both sides agreed to continue dialogue in a spirit of cooperation and mutual respect. The meeting reaffirmed the shared commitment towards efforts against illicit drug trafficking, grounded in accuracy, coordination, and security.’

Former Special Counsel Jack Smith is requesting to testify in open, public hearings before the House and Senate Judiciary Committees, Fox News Digital has learned.

Fox News Digital exclusively obtained a letter Smith’s attorneys sent to House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan and Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley Thursday afternoon, after both panels signaled interest in testimony from the former special counsel.

‘Given the many mischaracterizations of Mr. Smith’s investigation into President Trump’s alleged mishandling of classified documents and role in attempting to overturn the results of the 2020 election, Mr. Smith respectfully requests the opportunity to testify in open hearings before the House and Senate Judiciary Committees,’ Smith attorneys Lanny Breuer and Peter Koski wrote.

‘During the investigation of President Trump, Mr. Smith steadfastly adhered to established legal standards and Department of Justice guidelines, consistent with his approach throughout his career as a dedicated public servant,’ they wrote.

‘He is prepared to answer questions about the Special Counsel’s investigation and prosecution, but requires assurance from the Department of Justice that he will not be punished for doing so,’ they continued. ‘To that end, Mr. Smith needs guidance from the Department of Justice regarding federal grand jury secrecy requirements and authorization on the matters he may speak to regarding, among other things, Volume II of the Final Report of the Special Counsel, which is not publicly available.’

Smith’s attorneys also noted that in order to provide ‘full and accurate answers to your questions, Mr. Smith requires access to the Special Counsel files, which he no longer has the ability to access.’

‘With the guidance and access described above, Mr. Smith is available to testify in an open hearing at your earliest convenience,’ they wrote.

A source familiar told Fox News Digital that Smith’s attorneys are planning to officially seek guidance from the Department of Justice on the matter.

The letter from Smith’s attorneys comes after Jordan, R-Ohio, requested Smith appear for a closed-door transcribed interview and provide all records from his work related to President Donald Trump.

The letter also comes after Grassley, R-Iowa, and nearly two dozen Senate Republicans demanded that the Department of Justice and FBI release documents on Smith’s decision to subpoena telecommunications companies for phone records of a number of Senate Republicans during his probe into Jan. 6, 2021.

Fox News Digital exclusively reported earlier in October that Smith tracked the private communications and phone calls of GOP Sens. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee, Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, Josh Hawley of Missouri, Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming, Bill Hagerty of Tennessee, Dan Sullivan of Alaska, Tommy Tuberville of Alabama and GOP Rep. Mike Kelly of Pennsylvania as part of his ‘Arctic Frost’ investigation.

An official said the records were collected in 2023 by Smith and his team after subpoenaing major telephone providers. 

An FBI official told Fox News Digital that Smith and his team tracking the senators were able to see which phone numbers they called, the location the phone call originated and the location where it was received.

A source said the calls were likely in reference to the vote to certify the 2020 election. 

Smith, though, called his decision to subpoena several Republican lawmakers’ phone records ‘entirely proper’ and consistent with Justice Department policy.

‘As described by various Senators, the toll data collection was narrowly tailored and limited to the four days from January 4, 2021 to January 7, 2021, with a focus on telephonic activity during the period immediately surrounding the January 6 riots at the U.S. Capitol,’ Smith’s lawyers wrote Tuesday to Grassley. 

Smith was appointed special counsel by Attorney General Merrick Garland in November 2022.

Smith, after months of investigating, charged Trump in the U.S. District Court for Washington, D.C., in his 2020 election case, but after Trump was elected president, Smith sought to dismiss the case. Judge Tanya Chutkan granted that request. 

Smith’s case cost taxpayers more than $50 million. 

‘Jack Smith certainly has a lot of answering to do, but first, Congress needs to have all the facts at its disposal,’ Grassley told Fox News Digital Thursday. ‘Hearings should follow once the investigative foundation has been firmly set, which is why I’m actively working with the DOJ and FBI to collect all relevant records that Mr. Smith has had years to become familiar with.’

Fox News Digital reached out to Jordan for comment and has yet to receive a reply. 

Fox News’ Ashley Oliver contributed to this report. 

Millions of Americans who rely on federal food benefits could be among the next casualties of the ongoing government shutdown. 

Approximately 42 million people in the U.S. who use the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) are in danger of not receiving aid come Nov. 1, when the program’s funds are expected to run dry, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) warned state agencies in a memo obtained by Fox News Digital on Thursday.

More than two dozen states have alerted residents to possible lapses in funding. Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin declared a state of emergency over SNAP benefits on Thursday.

‘It requires about $8 billion each month to fund SNAP benefits nationwide. When there’s no funding it impacts not just pockets of people, but it’s going to impact people all around the country,’ said Rev. Eugene Cho, president and CEO of Bread for the World, a nonprofit hunger advocacy group that works with local partners to educate recipients about access to food.

Cho explained to Fox News Digital that some states will feel the drying up government funding more than others.

‘Yes, funding comes from the federal government, but the administration of it happens through local states,’ he said. ‘And so, when it comes to SNAP, states are on a little bit of a different rhythm in terms of how they’re conveying the reduction or the elimination of SNAP benefits. It is playing out a little bit differently from state to state.’ 

The longer the shutdown goes on, the less funding also becomes available for the Women, Infants and Children (WIC) nutrition program, which helps nearly 7 million vulnerable pregnant women and children under age 5.

It could pose a political headache for Democrats who have resisted agreeing to Republicans’ federal funding plan for over a month, demanding significant concessions on healthcare in exchange for their support.

‘We are approaching an inflection point for Senate Democrats. Continue to hold out for healthcare for illegals or reopen the government so mothers, babies, and the most vulnerable among us can receive timely WIC and SNAP allotments,’ a USDA spokesperson told Fox News Digital.

The House passed a seven-week extension of FY2025 funding largely along partisan lines on Sept. 19. The measure, a continuing resolution (CR), is aimed at giving lawmakers more time to strike a longer-term deal for FY2026.

But in the Senate, where several more Democrats are needed to break a filibuster than have been voting for it, progress has stalled, with the legislation having failed 12 times already.

Democrats are demanding that any spending plan be paired with an extension of enhanced Obamacare subsidies that are set to expire at the end of 2025.

They have also called for Republicans to repeal the Medicaid cuts made in their One Big, Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) earlier this year.

‘Millions of American families are about to lose access to food assistance because Democrats are openly admitting to being afraid of their far-left base and refuse to reopen the government,’ House Agriculture Committee Chair Glenn Thompson, R-Pa., told Fox News Digital.

Thompson’s panel has jurisdiction over SNAP in the House.

‘We need to reopen the government, so we can put Americans first by making sure families can put food on the table and our farmers are supported,’ he said.

Democrats could also be faced with the political quagmire of having previously railed against Republicans moving to expand SNAP work requirements in the OBBBA, to now be blamed by the right for federal food benefits drying up.

The Trump administration does have some power to move existing funding around to help cover shortages during the shutdown. The White House moved research and development funding at the Pentagon to cover active duty military paychecks on Oct. 15 and reallocated some $300 million from tariff revenues for WIC earlier this month.

But any such fix would be temporary, as the two aforementioned adjustments have been.

When reached for comment about the administration’s SNAP warning, the top Democrat on the House Agriculture Committee told Fox News Digital that USDA needed to tap into the government’s emergency SNAP reserves.

‘It’s time the administration do right by seniors, children and veterans and utilize the SNAP contingency fund to ensure benefits can be provided for November,’ ranking member Rep. Angie Craig, D-Minn., said.

The SNAP contingency fund currently has some $5 billion — not enough for an entire month’s worth of service.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., told reporters Thursday that he believed the White House would tap into that funding, however.

‘As has been the case in prior government shutdowns, the money can be found by the administration if they chose to do so. In fact, there’s about $5 billion available in a contingency fund for emergency circumstances just like this,’ Jeffries said. ‘But the administration refuses to agree to use it. Why? Because they want to starve the American people as part of their continuing effort to visit cruelty on everyday Americans.’