Gov. Glenn Youngkin declared a state of emergency Thursday to authorize the use of state funds to continue providing Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits to more than 850,000 Virginians — including thousands of Alexandria residents — starting Nov. 1.
The emergency declaration comes as federal funding for SNAP is expected to run out after 22 days of a federal government shutdown that began Oct. 1.
Think the decades-old food stamps program deserves to be in the callous, capricious cross hairs of Elon Musk, President Donald Trump and the latter’s spineless sycophants in Congress? Then you don’t know someone like Ndaneh Luseni.
The 34-year-old Alexandria woman, a single mother with three children, depends on the nourishment that food stamps provide. Luseni receives only $83 a month in benefits from what’s formally known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. Yet, that money allows her to help make ends meet on a regular basis. SNAP pays for essentials like eggs, milk, bread and juice in her household.
