Leah Douglas
@leahjdouglas.bsky.social
1.7K followers 330 following 100 posts
Reuters journalist covering agriculture, fed agencies, more. email: [email protected]; signal: leahjdouglas.01 on the food & ag beat for 10-15 years, depending how you count. they/them. https://reuters.com/authors/leah-douglas | www.leahjdouglas.com
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leahjdouglas.bsky.social
Want to reach me securely? Use this link to contact me on Signal: tinyurl.com/2x48v222

I'm a journalist covering agriculture, bird flu, USDA, farm labor, trade, and many other areas for @reuters.com. Have something to share? Message me. We protect our sources.
leahjdouglas.bsky.social
Thanks very much to the team at 1A for having me on @npr.org / @wamu.org today to talk about the government shutdown and risks to WIC, and the broader context of rising hunger and federal food aid cuts.

Listen to the segment here: the1a.org/segments/wha...
What the shutdown means for the Women, Infants and Children program
The GOP is blaming the Left for keeping baby formula and healthy foods out of the hands of low-income families.
the1a.org
leahjdouglas.bsky.social
The Trump administration is expected to announce a plan as soon as Tuesday to bail out U.S. farmers - as much as $15B - but the plan could be difficult to roll out because of the government shutdown.

Read more from me and Bo Erickson at @reuters.com: www.reuters.com/world/us/tru...
www.reuters.com
leahjdouglas.bsky.social
Democrats say the Trump administration is violating the Hatch Act by posting political messages on government websites, like the USDA. Reporting by me and Steve Holland.
leahjdouglas.bsky.social
🚨The WIC nutrition program could face funding shortfalls in days if the government shutdown continues.

Bo Erickson and I report for @reuters.com on why this key aid is now in jeopardy: www.reuters.com/business/hea...
US government shutdown threatens food-aid program for low-income Americans
Crucial food assistance for about 6.7 million low-income Americans has been put in jeopardy.
www.reuters.com
leahjdouglas.bsky.social
Health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. plans to change the childhood vaccine schedule in September, former CDC head Susan Monarez told Congress on Wednesday.

Kennedy asked her to commit to approving the changes before reviewing scientific evidence, Monarez said.

www.reuters.com/business/hea...
www.reuters.com
leahjdouglas.bsky.social
NEW: The USDA has moved to end union contracts with some workers at the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service and the Food Safety and Inspection Service, the latest move by the Trump administration to strip federal workers of collective bargaining rights. Story TK @reuters.com
leahjdouglas.bsky.social
Trump officials defended their immigration tactics on Sunday, including a California farm raid on Thursday that left one worker dead.

Border czar Tom Homan said ICE officers were doing their jobs at the raid.

"It's always unfortunate when there's deaths," he said.

www.reuters.com/world/us/tru...
Trump administration defends immigration tactics after California worker's death
Administration officials said they would appeal a ruling to halt some of the administration's more aggressive tactics.
www.reuters.com
leahjdouglas.bsky.social
A farmworker died today from injuries sustained after a 30-foot fall from a building during yesterday's immigration raid on a California cannabis farm.

Other workers are injured and US citizens are detained and unaccounted for, says the United Farm Workers.

www.reuters.com/legal/govern...
One California worker dead, hundreds arrested, after cannabis farm raid
A California farmworker died on Friday from injuries sustained a day earlier when U.S. immigration agents raided a cannabis operation and arrested hundreds of workers, according to a farmworker advocacy group.
www.reuters.com
leahjdouglas.bsky.social
The House tax bill would push $22 billion in spending for SNAP to states. They say they can't afford it - and could be forced to scale back the program.

My latest: www.reuters.com/world/us/sta...
leahjdouglas.bsky.social
Funding for groups like Fishing Partnership Support Services, which trains hundreds of fishermen each year in safety practices, is also at risk.

Al Cottone, a fourth-generation fisherman and a FPSS instructor, told me in Newburyport, Mass, that training cuts would be "tragic."