…The threat of Mei’s dismissal has sparked concerns & outrage among other USDA workers & members of the Federal Unionists Network, who argue that the move is part of a concerted effort by the #Trump admin to chill #speech among federal employees.
At the time Mei spoke to MSNBC, the information she shared was publicly available through a variety of news articles & guidance from anti-hunger advocates, think tanks & organizations.
#USDA itself, in a memo dated Sept30, explained that #SNAP funding would lapse because of the #shutdown & that the #OMB would use contingency reserves to pay for benefits past Oct. That memo, however, was scrubbed from the agency’s website later in Oct, once the #Trump admin began arguing against tapping contingency funds to pay for benefits.
In the MSNBC interview, host Chris Jansing also explained that Mei was speaking as herself & a #union leader, not a USDA employee.
#law #labor #FreeSpeech
