The Schumer shutdown is now approaching its second week, leaving federal workers and military families scrambling to make ends meet. In some areas, food pantries report a surge in demand of up to 30%, underscoring the real-life consequences of political gridlock in Washington.
Multiple attempts to fund the government have failed because Democrats have continued to filibuster the continuing resolution. Their goal is to secure an additional $1.5 trillion in spending for left-wing priorities, including free health care for illegal immigrants.
Military families are increasingly relying on food banks as the government shutdown stretches into its ninth day, leaving active-duty service members and their loved ones scrambling for basic necessities. At the Armed Services YMCA (ASYMCA), long lines of uniformed personnel and their families stretched around the building as they waited for access to donated groceries.
The Armed Services YMCA, which was instituted in 1861 during the Civil War to provide relief and comfort to sick and wounded soldiers, has encouraged the broader military community to take advantage of food assistance and other programs that in the short term could minimize financial strain incurred from delayed payments.
“Starting last week at our normal food operations, we saw an increase in demand,” Dorene Ocamb, chief development and brand officer of ASYMCA, told Military.com. “As a result, we ran out of food a little more quickly than normal. We had about a 34% increase in Killeen, Texas, which was the first sort of food distribution after the shutdown happened.
“I will say we sort of preemptively planned that if a shutdown were to occur that we would need to serve resources. So, we have planned some additional food distribution events…because we predict there is more need.”
ASYMCA helps about 500,000 military families per year on average.
Scripps News Service reporter Heather Healy described the scene: “As I take a step aside here, there is quite a bit of military members and their families in line because of this government shutdown. We are in day nine of it, and they are here for a food pantry.”
Volunteers at the ASYMCA say the surge in demand is unprecedented. One food bank worker told Healy, “Um, so when we first started coming, there definitely wasn’t this amount of people. It was a lot, but it wasn’t this amount to where it wrapped around the building. Um, but lately, it has been a lot. Like, we were here last week, and we were in line for, like, two hours.”
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Ordinarily, food supplies at the ASYMCA run out by mid-afternoon, but last week, they were gone by 10:30 a.m. “In a normal week, we usually run out of food around 1:00 in the afternoon. Last week, we ran out of food about 10:30,” a ASYMCA worker said.
The growing lines at food banks highlight the severe struggles military families face as Democrats let the shutdown drag on, forcing those who serve the nation to rely on charity just to feed their families. The Schumer Shutdown isn’t merely a political standoff—it’s a direct assault on the men and women defending this country. Volunteers report unprecedented demand, with supplies running out hours earlier than usual, leaving service members and their children scrambling.
Democrats have nobody to blame for the Schumer Shutdown but themselves. Chuck Schumer led the charge to close the government for illegals’ healthcare—and then smugly declared, “every day gets better for us,” even though they're forcing members of our military to rely on food banks. Help us reveal the truth—use promo code POTUS47 for 74% off your VIP membership.