Watch Joe and Kailey LIVE every day on YouTube: http://bit.ly/3vTiACF.

Food stamps are fast becoming the centerpiece of congressional Republicans’ and Democrats’ shutdown stare-down as nutritional benefits for 41 million Americans threaten to dry up in just three days.

After weeks of seeming inaction and stalemate inside the Capitol, both sides are eyeing the deadline as a way to pressure the other into making a deal. The issue took center stage after Vice President JD Vance said Tuesday that the White House believes it can pay troops this Friday, once again taking a political grenade — missed paychecks for the military — off the table.

The maneuver would clear the way for missed Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits Saturday to become the No. 1 pressure point on lawmakers to end a nearly month-long government shutdown.

Bloomberg Washington Correspondents Joe Mathieu and Kailey Leinz deliver insight and analysis on the latest headlines from the White House and Capitol Hill, including conversations with influential lawmakers and key figures in politics and policy. On this edition, Joe speaks with:

• Bloomberg Washington Correspondent Tyler Kendall.
• Bloomberg International Economics and Policy Correspondent Michael McKee.
• Republican Senator Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia.
• Republican Congressman Chuck Fleischmann of Tennessee.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.