Government shutdown updates: Judge lays out path for SNAP benefits

Vice President JD Vance on Thursday was asked by a reporter why the administration can't move funds to ensure at least some SNAP benefits are paid, as the program will run out of money on Nov. 1.

"The unfortunate reality -- and we're starting to see this with our aviation industry, we're going to find out the hard way with SNAP benefits -- is the American people are already suffering, and the suffering is going to get a lot worse," Vance said.

Vance argued President Donald Trump is trying make the shutdown as "painless as possible" and said "the Democrats are acting irresponsibly."

"Right now, this government, this administration, we're like guys running around with a leak in a dam wall trying to plug it with bubble gum ... Why don't the Democrats just stop this entire charade and reopen the government so that we don't have to try to make this thing work on a shoestring budget, which is what we're trying to do," Vance said.

Vice President JD Vance spoke with reporters outside the White House after leading a round table on the impact of the shutdown on aviation workers, who this week missed their first full paycheck.

"Here's what I found out: It actually worries me a great deal, because I think that as much as delays have gotten worse over the last couple of weeks, everybody here is very worried that we're going to see more delays, more stresses on the people who are actually making the aviation system run and more problems for both the consumers, but also the great workers who actually make this incredible shining jewel of the American economy actually work and work on time and work safely," Vance said.

Though, when asked if Americans should be afraid to fly, Vance said no.

"No, I don't think Americans should be afraid to fly, because we've got great airline professionals who are keeping the safest aviation industry in the world afloat. But they're doing it with incredible stress," he said.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said while most workers might be able to miss one paycheck, "none of them can get through two paychecks."

"If Democrats don't get their act together very quickly, you're going to see huge problems," Duffy said.

House Speaker Mike Johnson maintained that the Trump administration does not have the capacity to fund SNAP benefits on Nov. 1 unless Democrats vote to reopen and fund the government.

"The Democrat leaders in the Senate and the House have put their own political survival in front of the needs of the American people," the speaker told reporters, contending Democrats are "bowing to the demands of their far-left base."

During the record-setting 35-day shutdown that stretched from December 2018 to January 2019, the Trump administration distributed SNAP benefits early, ensuring funding would go out if the shutdown stretched on.

Johnson insisted that "the money doesn't exist."

"Some of the Democrats have argued that you can use this contingency fund, but the truth is, there's no legal mechanism to do it," he claimed.

It is not yet clear yet whether the House will meet as scheduled next week for legislative business, but Republicans have kept lawmakers in their districts since passing the 7-week bill on Sept. 19 – waiting on the Senate to act.

-ABC News' John Parkinson

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, the chamber's top Democrat, took to the floor on Thursday to say that this weekend, Americans will come face-to-face with increased health care costs.

Many Americans are expected to see rising costs for their health care coverage when the annual window to sign up for health insurance through the Affordable Care Act opens Nov. 1– the chief issue for Democrats amid shutdown negotiations.

“Republicans are pretending that the ACA premium crisis does not exist, but they should go ask families who are getting their insurance premium increases today, tomorrow, Saturday," Schumer added.

Schumer accused President Donald Trump of having "bowed down to President Xi" during the shutdown, as Trump was in Asia this week in a three-country tour that culminated in the high-stakes meeting with China's president.

"In the middle of the second-longest government shutdown in American history, Donald Trump left the country and traveled all the way to Asia to meet President Xi and what did he do? He bowed down to President Xi," Schumer said.