Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins appeared alongside House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) on Friday on Capitol Hill, the latest high-profile guest the speaker has hosted as the government shutdown persists.
Johnson has hosted a slew of guests at his daily press conference each morning, with Rollins’s appearance coinciding with the lapse of funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program that will happen Saturday due to the government shutdown.
“So the truth has finally revealed itself, hasn’t it?” Rollins said at the press conference. “Democrats’ support for programs like SNAP is now reduced to cynical control over people’s lives. This last month has shown that the party who constantly says it puts people over politics does the complete opposite. Millions of Americans, as of tomorrow, will no longer receive SNAP and potentially WIC or even a paycheck.”
Rollins is not the first Cabinet member to join Johnson for a press conference. Last week, Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy joined the speaker to discuss issues with air traffic control as air traffic controllers go without pay. Duffy leaned into the difficulties these controllers are facing, while highlighting how it impacts travel and safety. Small Business Administrator Kelly Loeffler joined House leadership last Monday to address the “financial strain” on the country.
Aside from members of the Trump administration, Johnson and his leadership team have brought in a number of members from different committees and caucuses to discuss different aspects of the shutdown. Just this week, the speaker has been joined by the New York delegation, House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Brian Mast (R-FL), House Small Business Committee Chairman Roger Williams (R-TX), and Republican Study Committee Chairman August Pfluger (R-TX).
The government is just days from a record-long shutdown, with little negotiation taking place. The House-passed continuing resolution to fund the government until Nov. 21 still sits in the upper chamber, where it has failed to meet the 60-vote threshold over a dozen times to reopen the government.
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Johnson has kept the House out of session for the entirety of the shutdown, announcing Friday that it will continue to stay out of session next week, as the members remain on 48-hour notice.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) has tried to keep enough of his Democratic caucus in line to force Republicans to strike a deal that meets Democratic demands on healthcare. Only Sen. Angus King (I-ME) and two Democrats have backed the GOP plan. Lawmakers have begun floating a long-term continuing resolution, which could extend Biden-era funding levels through the end of fiscal 2026.