Friday, November 7, 2025

Flights cut and food stamps

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This is America

Stories of justice and action across America

Fri Nov 7 2025

When will it end?

The longest-ever federal government shutdown is creating more problems for Americans whether at the airport or the dinner table.

Greetings, This is America readers, Phillip M. Bailey, chief political correspondent for USA TODAY.

Up the sky, you might not notice but Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced Nov. 5 there will be a 10% reduction in flights at 40 major airports because of the funding crisis, which has now lasted for 37 days. There is no telling how long the restrictions might last or how much worse delays will get as Congress remains at a logjam.

This means fewer deliveries of medicine and packages, but also the amount of food heading to restaurants and grocery stores.

Speaking of food, the partial payments for the millions of Americans who receive benefits through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, will start going out this month. But it's unclear when those funds will actually reach people, according to federal officials.

People wait in a security checkpoint line at George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston, Texas, on Nov. 4, 2025. Amid the ongoing government shutdown, lines at airports are expected to grow amid increased staffing issues at some of the country's busiest hubs.

MARK FELIX, AFP via Getty Images

For more on what's happening with flights and food, check out USA TODAY Network's coverage:

Which 40 airports are facing flight reductions? Here's a full list.

65%: That's how much SNAP recipients will receive in November, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which means $646 a month for a family of four. It was originally thought to be 50%.

End the filibuster? President Donald Trump, known as a deal-maker, is focused on killing the Senate filibuster, which would allow the 53-member GOP majority to push through the House spending plan that eliminates health care tax subsidies at the center of the fight. But the flight cancellations are raising the stakes in Congress as bipartisan talks to reopen the government gain steam after the Democrats swept the off-year elections.

Mental health worsens over one year for LGBTQ+ youth, survey finds

Anxiety, depression and thoughts of suicide.

The list of troubling trends among LGBTQ+ teens and young adults is rising at alarming levels compared to 2024, a new survey finds.

The Trevor Project, a national LGBTQ+ youth advocacy group, released the study and it reported 68% had anxiety and 54% had symptoms of depression. It also found that of nearly 1,700 youths between the ages of 13 and 24, suicide ideation grew from 41% to 47% over the one-year period while suicide attempts decreased from 11% to 7%.

This information drops at a time when the debate about trans rights and same-sex marriage is raging again, as Trump's supporters cheer as reassertion of more traditional views and values.

"I think it's critical for lawmakers and community leaders to understand the weight of both their words and their policies," said Ronita Nath, a lead author of the survey's accompanying report.

But many conservative-minded voters reject that notion and cheer Trump, who earlier this year signed an executive order that instructed federal agencies to cut funding or take other action against hospitals that provide gender transition care to minors.

Following the order, several hospitals suspended or reevaluated such programs.

Thanks for reading! See you back next week with more stories of justice from across the country