Obama-Appointed Judge Blocks Bans on Buying Soda with Food StampsSean Moran 23 Jun 2026
U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson, an Obama appointee, has blocked the Trump administration’s steps toward banning the purchase of soda with Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, more commonly known as food stamps.
“Congress defined what ‘food’ is supposed to be, and it did not authorize the agency to amend or waive the definition it enacted. It did not authorize the agency to cut types of food out of SNAP entirely,” Jackson wrote in a Monday filing.
“It set out clearly the type of experimental projects that could be tested to address the unquestionably serious health issues attributed to the rise of obesity in the population in general and particularly the low-income population,” the Obama-appointed judge continued.
Five states, including Iowa, Nebraska, West Virginia, Colorado, and Tennessee, have submitted requests to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to conduct pilot projects to waive the federal definition of food in order to remove items such as soft drinks (soda) from the list of allowable purchases on SNAP.
Jackson argued that the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 provided the strict definition of what constitutes “food.”
USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins issued approval letters for the states’ requests; Jackson’s ruling vacates the approvals.
The USDA has approved “food restriction” waivers in 23 states and the move has been backed by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as part of the larger “Make America Healthy Again” movement.
A USDA spokesperson told the Hill that “the idea that taxpayer funds should not be used to purchase junk food should not be controversial.”
“USDA will not be backing down from the fight to Make America Healthy Again, including for families and communities reliant on SNAP,” the spokesperson continued.
https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2026/06/23/obama-appointed-judge-blocks-bans-buying-soda-food-stamps/