Emergency Hearing Called for Trump’s Fatal Court Violations

6 Nov 2025 · 16 min · 4 chapters

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In short

An emergency legal fight over SNAP (food stamp) payments. Judge McConnell (Rhode Island) ordered full SNAP payments using Congress’s reserved funds; the Trump administration filed that payments may be delayed weeks/months and will be only partial. The host argues this is arbitrary/capricious and harmful to 42 million people, especially children, seniors, veterans, and disabled Americans, and that Trump is publicly refusing compliance on Election Day.

Guests

No named guest appears in the transcript. The host says he will interview Sky Perryman of Democracy Forward on Friday, but she is not present in this episode.

Key claims

Court orders require full, expeditious payments; the agency’s affidavit (Patrick Penn) justifies delay; Trump’s Election Day post signals indifference to hunger.

Notable examples

Emergency application filed by Democracy Forward; reference to Judge Telwani in Massachusetts issuing related orders; “half payment” plan; “time is of the essence” language about hunger.

Written by AI. May contain mistakes. Listen to the episode to check what was said.

Chapters

Tap a time to open that second in VO

Trump and SNAP Payments Crisis

2:04 to 4:23

Discuss the implications of Trump's actions on SNAP payments for vulnerable Americans.

“We got some breaking news and a fast moving story about those SNAP food stamp payments to 42 million of the most underprivileged of Americans.”

Judge McConnell's Order and Legal Actions

4:23 to 7:22

Delve into Judge McConnell's order regarding SNAP payments and the legal ramifications.

“And while all that's going on and they're debating the fine points of an affidavit filed by Mr.”

Update on SNAP and Legal Proceedings

8:34 to 12:51

Analyze the latest updates on SNAP payments and ongoing legal battles.

“Thanks for all the hard work you're putting in.”

Update on SNAP and Legal Proceedings

14:04 to 14:23

Analyze the latest updates on SNAP payments and ongoing legal battles.

“Jerry compares rates side by side from over 50 top insurers and helps you switch with ease.”
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Transcript

Automatic transcript. May contain errors.

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2:07Michael Popok:We got some breaking news and a fast moving story about those SNAP food stamp payments to 42 million of the most underprivileged of Americans. those that are below the poverty line, that count on food stamps and other food assistance to stop hunger. Public interest groups like Democracy Forward have had a run back to Judge McConnell today on Tuesday, on Election Day, because the Trump administration in a public filing and Donald Trump in a social media post have just flipped the bird to the federal judges and said they're not going to be making the SNAP payments as ordered to do so. Judge McConnell, chief judge of Rhode Island, had ordered that by no later than Monday and or Wednesday, that the federal government begin making snap payments, that they make it from the reserve of the six billion dollars that Congress had set aside and that they find a way to top it off to eight billion to make a full payment so that people can pay for their food.

3:09Michael Popok:People can pay for the basic necessities that they need to have dignity in our life and are not used as a political pawn for cheap political points by Donald Trump as Americans die on his watch. And in response, yes, there was a filing by the federal government. Yes, they got a guy who's like an undersecretary of the Federal Department of Agriculture, Mr. Penn, to file a declaration that said, well, we know we're supposed to fund by Wednesday, but it might be weeks or months, judge, and we're not going to do the full payment of$8 billion full funding. We're going to make a half a payment to everybody because we don't want to take money that we have laying around in other programs to use it to help people from dying.

3:50Michael Popok:I mean, that's my artist's rendering of his actual affidavit, which I will read from. Well, that's not good enough. And now we've got Democracy Forward, who represents a series of church groups and public interest groups and cities, run back now today to Judge McConnell with another emergency application saying, look what they just filed from the Department of Agriculture. They're not going to make the payments for weeks or months, and it's only going to be partial payments. That is arbitrary and capricious agency action. You have to put a stop to it, Judge McConnell. And while all that's going on and they're debating the fine points of an affidavit filed by Mr.

4:31Michael Popok:Penn about why it's taking him so long and why he doesn't want to go take money that he could get from other departments under his jurisdiction to make sure that children, the elderly, babies, veterans, disabled don't die. Donald Trump decides to weigh in. Perfect. On Election Day. Think about the sharp contrast. Americans are going to the polls in New Jersey, in Virginia, in Pennsylvania, in state state Supreme Court votes at Prop 50 in California. And Donald Trump thinks today is the day to announce out loud that he's not going to comply with a federal order about SNAP payments. He just had his treasury secretary go on on Sunday, Scott Bessent, and go on Jake Tapper and say, well, we're not going to appeal.

5:18Michael Popok:We're going to try to make the benefit payments. And now Donald Trump, just as we came on the air here with this recording, here's what Donald Trump has to say. Snap and see if you can find the punishing human beings and taking away their dignity and their ability to survive to make a cheap political point. See if you can spot that. In this posting, snap benefits, which increased by billions and billions of dollars, many fold during crooked Joe Biden's disastrous term in office due to the fact that they were haphazardly handed to anyone who was asking will be given only when the radical left Democrats open up government, which they can easily do and not before.

6:02Michael Popok:Thanks for your attention to this matter, President DJT. How callous, how indifferent to the suffering of Americans, 42 million of them, more than almost 15 percent of our population by by the guy that's sitting in the Oval Office. He thinks that's the proper tone from the top to be set today on Election Day as he is on the ballot. Because if we're right about the polls, if we're right about the crowds and the courage that's out there to take down the Trump administration, to reject the Trump administration today at the polls, he's going to lose in Virginia. He's going to lose in New Jersey. He's going to lose on the Pennsylvania Supreme Court voting.

6:48Michael Popok:He's going to lose Prop 50 and he's going to lose a fair number of the municipal elections as well. And today's the day he looks America in the eye and says, I don't care if you die. Hunger is time of the essence. Let me read to you from the filing. A motion to enforce the temporary restraining order that has just been filed within hours by Democracy Forward. I'm going to have Sky Perryman of Democracy Forward, who's with us on Legal AF, Join me on Friday to talk about all these things. But right now, we can't wait till Friday for the interview. We got to go right now with the filing. Hey, everybody.

7:24Ben Micellis here from the Midas Touch Network. I wanted to let you know about my podcast partner, Michael Popak's new law firm. It's called the Popak Firm. Michael Popak's pursuing his dream of starting his own law firm, really based on the popular demand by all the Midas, Mighty, and Legal AF-ers who were approaching Michael Popak with their cases and saying, can you help us? And at that time, Popak was not able to. So he went out on his own. He started the Popak firm where he is now handling catastrophic injury cases like car accident cases, trucking cases, malpractice cases, big negligence cases, wrongful death cases.

8:07So if you or someone you know have a case like this, the consultation with Popak's firm is free. Give him a call. See if you have a case. It's thepopakfirm.com, thepopakfirm.com, or you can call 877-POPAKAF, P-O-P-O-K-A-F. So 1-877-P-O-P-O-K-A-F. Give Michael Popak a call. And I'm really proud of you, Popak.

8:35Michael Popok:Thanks for all the hard work you're putting in. Here's what they're saying. A page one of their new filing. Time is of the essence when it comes to hunger. 42 million people in this country who rely on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, SNAP, for basic nutritional needs, including children, senior citizens, and veterans, are now four days into November without any prospect of receiving their payments for weeks or even months, several months, by defendant's own account. They had this guy, Patrick Penn, file a declaration that said in paragraph 29, which they, of course, recite, that says it may take several weeks or months for us to be able to figure out the states to be able to figure out how to make payments.

9:15Michael Popok:That's not what the temporary restraining order said by Judge McConnell. Judge McConnell said, thank you very much, Donald Trump, for acknowledging that you're going to make the payments. You now have my clear order. I mean, he trolled him in the order. And you need to make these payments in full by Monday or tell me by Wednesday how you're exercising administrative discretion and why. Because if it's wrong, then you're being arbitrary and capricious and I'm going to revise my temporary restraining order. This is what it says. Because this court's order did not contemplate that millions would be deprived of basic nutritional assistance for weeks, let alone months, and indeed made clear that defendants had to expeditiously ensure short payments were to be received given the irreparable harm of being deprived of basic nutrition, plaintiffs request that this court act to enforce its temporary restraining order.

10:09Michael Popok:Now. And they cite to the declaration affidavit of Mr. Penn, who just says just blindly, just callously with indifference, bureaucratic indifference, it may take several months. Why don't you, Mr. Penn, why don't you not take out of your bank account whatever your family's using to purchase groceries and nutrition? Why don't you just take it out and try to survive for the next several months and see how that works? And so while we're fighting it out in court with this new filing, and I believe McConnell's gonna move, this is gonna be a fast-moving story. This video will go up. Follow me on Substack Live for Legal AF for updates.

10:53Michael Popok:This is going to go fast here on Tuesday because McConnell's going to pull this thing together, either issue a new order or do an emergency hearing. And then we're going to have to see. And then I got another judge to keep an eye on, Judge Telwani, who's in Massachusetts. She issued an order. She's not going to be happy with this filing either by the government because she said, I want to hear what the agency action recommendation is, proposal is on Monday. and if I don't like it, I'm going to issue a temporary restraining order. Watch for me to come back on here and tell you a temporary restraining order has been issued.

11:26Michael Popok:A second one by Judge Telwani in Massachusetts brought by 23 Democratic state attorneys general. The blue states are fighting for the impoverished in this country. The blue states and moderates and Democrats and public interest groups are fighting to make people not die. Hunger is colorblind. Dignity should be colorblind. And people, human beings, should not be, should not be political hostages for Donald Trump's trolling of the Democratic Party because he blames them for his inability, although he controls all three branches of government, to keep the government open. Because he refuses and he wants, and it's the same people, It's the same part of this 42 million who also need health care that the Democrats are fighting for with the shutdown.

12:13Michael Popok:That's what the shutdown is about. The shutdown is about making sure that Obamacare survives, that people get the tax deduction they need in order to acquire health care. It's the same group and a group right above them. The working poor in America who need health care. But but look at Donald Trump. what political strategist, I guess it's Donald Trump, came up with at the moment when there is a court dispute over a temporary restraining order to troll America on election day and say you're never going to issue the SNAP payments to help the most deserving. I'm going to continue to follow it all right here.

12:51Michael Popok:And all those developments, take a minute, hit the subscribe button on Midas Touch, but slide over to Legal AF YouTube channel and help us continue on our march to one million subscribers and our Legal AF sub stack, where I post all of these types of orders for you to read them for yourself and along with all their commentary. You want to protect and preserve our honest commentary, our First Amendment rights and your own? Become a paid member of Legal AF on the sub stack. Until my next report, I'm Michael Popak. Can't get your fill of Legal AF? Me neither. That's why we formed the Legal AF sub stack.

13:24Michael Popok:Every time we mention something in a hot take, whether it's a court filing or a oral argument, Come over to the Substack. You'll find the court filing and the oral argument there, including a daily roundup that I do call. Wait for it. Morning AF. What else? All the other contributors from Legal AF are there as well. We got some new reporting. We got interviews. We got ad free versions of the podcast and hot takes. Where? Legal AF on Substack. Come over now to free subscribe. Most people overpay for car insurance, not because they're careless, but because switching feels like too much hassle. That's why there's Jerry, your proactive insurance assistant.

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From the publisher

Trump and his Administration have, in the last 24 hours, already violated Chief Judge McConnell’s emergency temporary restraining order to force Trump to provide billions in SNAP food stamp payments to 42 million Americans no later than Wednesday. As Trump trolls the most underprivileged of Americans (the poor, disabled, Veterans, babies, children, and the elderly) who face starvation, declaring that he will violate the Court’s order and not make SNAP payments at all, public interest groups have rushed back to Court to make sure the Court acts and more people don’t die on Trump’s watch. Michael Popok dissects the new emergency filing, as Federal Judges in 2 states rush to save our most fragile populations.

Learn more about the Popok firm at https://thepopokfirm.com

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