Sen. Warnock tours community market, calls on Republicans to reopen government

ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) - As federal funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program remains in limbo, Senator Raphael Warnock is calling attention to impacted communities in Atlanta.

On Monday, the senator visited the Goodr Community Market on Edgewood Avenue. Around 90% of its customers rely on SNAP benefits.

The market opened in July to provide increased access to food for residents of the Sweet Auburn neighborhood.

It’s also open to the public, allowing up to 200 families to get $75 worth of free groceries every month. The market is near the Ebenezer Baptist Church, where Warnock serves as a senior pastor.

“I can tell you that people who live in this neighborhood, who sit in the pews of my church, aren’t thinking about the politicians. They’re thinking about their families,” he said. “The Republicans have the White House. They have the House. They have the Senate. If they want to reopen the government, they can do it anytime they want.”

Last week, Warnock voted no on a Republican-backed funding bill to end the government shutdown.

Democrats have said they won’t vote to reopen the government until Republicans prevent some healthcare subsidies from expiring.

On Monday, the Trump administration said it will partially fund SNAP after two judges issued rulings requiring it to keep the nation’s largest food aid program running.

“Obamacare is terrible. We can fix it with the democrats. All they have to do is let the country open and we’ll fix it,” Trump said in an interview on CBS’s 60 Minutes.