(CNN) — The Trump administration is asking a federal appeals court to pause a judge’s order that requires the government to fully cover food stamp benefits for tens of millions of Americans in November.

The emergency reques t made Friday morning to the First Circuit Court of Appeals comes a day after a federal judge in Rhode Island said the US Department of Agriculture must find additional money to make the payments, rejecting the administration’s decision to only partially fund the food benefits program this month.

The Justice Department, which represents the USDA in court, told the Boston-based appeals court that US District Judge John McConnell had overstepped his authority when he issued his order Thursday afternoon.

McConnell’s decision, DOJ attorneys wrote in court papers, “has

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