A federal judge in Boston on Thursday seemed skeptical of the Trump’s administration’s argument that SNAP benefits could be suspended for the first time in the food aid program’s history because of the government shutdown .

During a hearing over a request by 25 Democratic-led states to keep the funding flowing, U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani told lawyers that if the government can’t afford to cover the cost, there’s a process to follow rather than simply suspending all benefits. “The steps involve finding an equitable way of reducing benefits,” said Talwani, who was nominated to the court by then-President Barack Obama.

Talwani said she expects to issue a ruling and seemed to be leaning toward requiring the government to put billions of dollars in emergency funds toward SNAP. That

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