While the H.R. 1 (aka Big Beautiful Bill) passed back in July, its provisions are just kicking in. The new law now denies food aid to 1,245 Veterans and 24,271 homeless individuals in Oregon who had previously received benefits according to the Northwest News Network (https://www.klcc.org/politics-government/2025-10-02/oregon-complies-with-big-beautiful-bill-food-assistance-changes-as-governor-calls-them-simply-wrong). The Oregon Department of Human Services is applying these new rules now. Oregon Governor Tina Koteck responded in a written statement, “The federal cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) are simply wrong, and they will hurt Oregon families.” Oregonians in rural areas with weaker job markets will no longer be exempt from SNAP’s work requirement.

And more news

• A federal judge blocked President Trump’s plan to deploy 200 Oregon National Guard troops to Portland, ruling the move unconstitutional and “untethered to the facts,” as Oregon officials argued it violated state sovereignty and exaggerated unrest; the White House called the decision a “legal insurrection” and appealed, deepening the national clash over executive power, federalism, and the limits of military force in U.S. cities. Trying to circumvent the TRO, the California and Texas National Guard were then ordered to deploy to Oregon. A second emergency TRO was granted by the federal judge. “Because here it’s the conditions on the ground in Oregon that were the basis for my finding on a TRO — standard for a TRO that there was not a legal basis to bring federalized National Guard into Oregon.”
• Portland residents are pushing back against Trump’s portrayal of their city as “war ravaged,” showing through local activism, humor, and daily life that the city remains peaceful and vibrant — with locals organizing events like an “Emergency Naked Bike Ride” and emphasizing that Trump’s militarization narrative misrepresents Portland’s reality.
• The Trump administration is drafting a plan to make it harder for older Americans to qualify for Social Security disability benefits by removing age as a factor in determining work capability—a move that could cut benefits for hundreds of thousands and significantly reshape the federal safety net for poor, elderly, and disabled individuals.
• A Reagan-appointed judge issued a 161-page rebuke to Trump, finding the U.S. government violated the First Amendment by targeting pro-Palestinian student activists for deportation, and blasting the administration’s “full-throated assault on the First Amendment.”
• A federal judge blocked the Trump admin from permanently steering $233 million in FEMA disaster relief funds away from 12 blue states, issuing a restraining order just hours before a deadline that would have seen the funds lost for good.
• There are now over 2,200 peaceful protests planned for No Kings II on October 18^th. This is the most ever!