Doctor: Republicans are playing political games with children’s lives in shutdown | Opinion
As a pediatrician, it seems like almost every day I care for a family worried they will run out of food before the end of each month. I fear how much worse this will be if SNAP benefits are delayed or suspended this weekend. Republicans know there are billions of dollars in contingency funds that can be used to pay for SNAP during a shutdown, but they would rather play political games with the lives of American children.
I became a pediatrician to keep kids healthy. I cannot imagine having a child come into my clinic with an illness and know that medication is available to treat it, but decide to withhold that treatment because I want to prove a point. As the American Academy of Pediatrics says, “SNAP is medicine for food insecurity.” Donald Trump’s federal government is currently withholding that medicine. Our children deserve better.
Anna Ruderman, MD, Durham
Can’t win
Our Republican legislature has again proved they cannot win an honest election. Redistricting limits who can vote for whom. Most citizens want nonpartisan or bipartisan districting. Our legislators’ actions reminds me of the phrase “taxation without representation.”
Robert Brown, Raleigh
Solve this
Federal layoffs coupled with the federal agriculture department delaying money for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program have created a perfect storm at exactly the wrong time. “How do we do more with less,” said Inter-Faith Food Shuttle Chief Development Officer Kimberly Burrows, and the state government has cut food bank funding for the first time in 35 years.
I call on everyone to donate money and food to food banks right now. Families will soon be starving. And to members of Congress: Solve this impasse now. We are watching. And we will be voting.
William McCracken, Raleigh
Holding hostage
As teacher-union members, we know what it means to stand together for the essentials that keep families safe and communities strong. The MAGA Republicans in Congress are holding the federal budget hostage and pushing cuts that would rip away healthcare from millions of families.
We pay our taxes faithfully, but many of the wealthy get out of paying their fair share. They should not be getting more tax breaks. Working families already carry enough burdens: rising costs, stagnant wages and the daily stress of making ends meet. Increasing healthcare costs in the middle of these challenges is not just irresponsible, it’s cruel and immoral. Democrats are standing firm to protect Affordable Care Act subsidies and reverse Medicaid cuts, because they understand healthcare is a lifeline, not a bargaining chip.
Working people can’t afford higher premiums or lost coverage just to satisfy an extremist agenda. Unfortunately, Republicans are willing to gamble with our health, our jobs and our economy to score political points. Unions fight for good jobs, fair wages and benefits at the bargaining table, and Congress should do no less for the American people.
David Baynham, Durham
Political obscenities
It is an obscenity against the American democratic system for elected officials to select their voters, rather than the other way around. State GOP lawmakers who recently plotted and voted for the North Carolina redistricting scheme, far from being responsible public servants, are themselves political obscenities.
Charles Winkler, Raleigh
This story was originally published November 2, 2025 at 5:00 AM with the headline "Doctor: Republicans are playing political games with children’s lives in shutdown | Opinion."