With political messaging escalating on government websites, SNAP blame game comes to Beacon Hill

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In the Beacon Hill Cinematic Universe, Massachusetts Republicans tend to be bit players. The fights that get top billing involve Democrat versus Democrat, Senate versus House, and lately, the Bay State versus Washington.

But Republicans see their leverage increase when lawmakers hold lightly attended informal sessions, as happened on Monday. Sutton’s Ryan Fattman doubted the presence of a quorum, and since there weren’t enough senators, the move put a stop to legislative movement.

Fattman was sending a message about something outside the Senate chamber: The blame game over the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) funds amid the ongoing federal government shutdown.

Benefits won’t be issued on Nov. 1 for tens of millions of people, and the official CommonWealth of Massachusetts website notes, “President Trump is currently choosing not to issue November SNAP benefits that help you and many families put food on the table.” The website also posted that Trump and Republicans in Congress “created this crisis,” and the recent One Big Beautiful Bill Act contains new eligibility restrictions.

Pennsylvania officials, under Gov. Josh Shapiro, posted a similar message.

Fattman decried the posts. “It’s immature and it’s ethically questionable,” he said. “People need help, they don’t need more partisanship.”

Fattman said he felt the same way about the Trump administration’s attempts at the blame game. Earlier this month, the Department of Housing and Urban Development blamed the federal shutdown on the “Radical Left,” while camera-happy Kristi Noem, the head of Homeland Security, pushed a video at some airports explicitly faulting Democrats.

“It’s tit for tat and it’s gotta stop,” Fattman said, listing off hypotheticals like Auditor Diana DiZoglio placing a message on her official website criticizing Attorney General Andrea Campbell and Beacon Hill leaders for blocking a legislative audit. “The question becomes where does it end,” he said.

Healey defended the state’s postings and told reporters the Trump administration was making a deliberate choice. “The facts are that Donald Trump, right now, is refusing to fund SNAP even though he's got the funds to do it,” she said. “The facts are that every other president during a federal shutdown has continued SNAP benefits for kids, for our seniors, for people with disabilities, even during a shutdown, contingency funds. Donald Trump is choosing not to do that.”

The Trump administration, which has repeatedly taken an expansive view on executive power and bypassed Congress, in this case claims they do not have a choice, and they are unable to move funds into SNAP.

Healey claimed the state cannot backfill the money through its $8 billion rain day fund as a backstop. “Two hundred and forty million a month is what the federal government sends to SNAP beneficiaries,” she told reporters, who were joined by a Healey administration employee with their own camera. “There's no way that this state, or any state, can begin to backfill or cover this,” she said, explaining her choice.

Fattman plans to keep playing his bit part. He said he’ll shut down Thursday’s informal session, too, in order to keep sending his message.

Is the Beacon Hill Cinematic Universe like Marvel’s “The Avengers” or HBO’s “Succession”? Let me know what you think: [email protected].

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9:00 | The Board of Elementary and Secondary Education holds its monthly meeting. The board will receive an update on ongoing STEM initiatives, including high-dosage math tutoring for students below grade level and the Science Curriculum Adaptations Project for Special Educators (SCAPE).  | 135 Santilli Highway, Everett | Livestream

9:00 | MassINC's Gateway Cities Innovation Institute hosts its 13th Gateway Cities Innovation Summit, featuring discussion of urban policy and economic development through the lens of economic transition. Lowell Mayor Daniel Rourke gives opening remarks. In the afternoon, Economic Development Secretary Eric Paley sits for a fireside chat with the Boston Globe's Jon Chesto. Event is sold out. | Lowell Memorial Auditorium, 50 E. Merrimack St., Lowell

12:00 | Attorney General Andrea Campbell announces a new action against the Trump administration during a rally and press availability with Project Bread and the Make Hungry History coalition opposing the federal government's decision to allow SNAP benefits to lapse during the federal government shutdown. | State House steps, Boston

1:00 | Parts of Gov. Maura Healey's so-called Municipal Empowerment bill come before the Joint Committee on Municipalities and Regional Government as the only matter on the agenda. Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll is expected to offer testimony for the administration. | Hearing Room B-1, State House, Boston | Agenda and Access Info

7:00 | Boston Mayor Michelle Wu delivers a State of the Schools speech to "celebrate Boston’s educators and lay out a shared agenda to make BPS the first choice for Boston families." | Josiah Quincy Upper School, 900 Washington St., Chinatown

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The Bold Boston super PAC, which supported Mayor Michelle Wu in the September preliminary, sent $125,000 to a new super PAC, Boston Voice, to help pay for mailers in support of Henry Santana, a Wu ally running for a second term on the 13-member City Council. Bold Boston was primarily funded by unions and environmental advocacy groups.

Boston Voice, created earlier this month, also took in $10,000 from SEIU 32BJ, according to publicly available campaign finance filings.

Another union, the Professional Fire Fighters of Mass., has a super PAC that funneled $26,000 to a super PAC that sprung up last week. A Balanced and Better Boston is led by Kathryn Burton, a former chief of staff to ex-mayor Marty Walsh, and it’s supporting Walsh childhood friend Frank Baker, a Wu critic who is looking to get back on the council.

Voting is underway, with just over a thousand people having already headed to early voting polling locations last weekend.

SHIELDS UP: Gov. Maura Healey is funneling $47 million in state and federal funding into the state’s defense sector as part of an initiative called Strategic Hub for Innovation, Exchange and Leadership in Defense (SHIELD). – GBH News and Bloomberg

LITERACY REFORM: House lawmakers plan a Wednesday vote on an early literacy reform bill, with Speaker Ron Mariano, a former teacher, noting that there are some districts that haven’t fully adopted a proven literacy curriculum. – State House News Service

STATE HOUSE UNION: More than three years into the effort, the unionization push by State House staffers continues to gather support, except from the top two Democrats: Senate President Karen Spilka and House Speaker Ron Mariano. – CommonWealth Beacon

SIXTH CONGRESSIONAL: Former Vice President Kamala Harris has endorsed former Biden administration aide Dan Koh in the race to fill Seth Moulton’s seat. Meanwhile, former Lynn Mayor Tom McGee is out. Rick Jakious, a longtime aide to Seth Moulton, told the Globe’s Vermont columnist Kevin Cullen that he is in. – Boston Globe and POLITICO via X

LEFT ON THE TABLE: The incumbents running for reelection to the New Bedford City Council have pressed the police on crime, but not recommended reforms that came out of reviews costing the city $250,000. – New Bedford Light

LAWRENCE ELECTION: The two competing mayoral campaigns had complaints about the elections process as early voting got underway while under state supervision. – Eagle-Tribune

Two of the nation’s best hospitals—Massachusetts General Hospital and Brigham and Women’s Hospital—are uniting as one team to deliver the most powerful kind of cancer care. One team that performs the most surgeries and has the most specialists in New England. One team turning discovery into hope. We’re one against cancer. Discover more

ROLLINS REBUKE: The 12-member state Board of Bar Overseers voted to issue a public reprimand for former U.S. Attorney Rachael Rollins for misconduct. Three board members dissented because they believed the punishment was too lenient. Rollins stepped down from her post after a federal investigation found she was seeking to influence the Suffolk DA election. – Boston Herald

CITY HALL TRIAL: Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno took the stand in a wrongful termination trial involving a former longtime aide who was fired in 2020. – MassLive

STATE SOLAR: Towns in Western Massachusetts concerned with deforestation and noise are readying for a burst of solar projects, helped along by new state rules to help with clean energy goals. – Daily Hampshire Gazette

IN MEMORIAM: Leslie Harris, who served as a Juvenile Court judge, public defender, assistant district attorney and probation officer, has died. He was 77. – Universal Hub

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