WASHINGTON — A U.S. judge ordered Trump officials to fully cover the cost of food-aid benefits for more than 42 million eligible Americans this month, rejecting an administration plan to only partially fund the program during the government shutdown.

The order from U.S. District Judge John McConnell on Thursday means that the U.S. Department of Agriculture must tap alternative reserve funds to send states the $8.5 billion to $9 billion needed this month for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, as the budget impasse in Congress drags on.

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