Well, it sort of is the point. Why is it the federal government's role to be funding programs like Meals on Wheels to begin with?
To assure they are working even at times of public unrest and when the private sponsors, who are usually concentrated in big cities and areas which aren't usually in danger of "drying up", are in no financial mood of helping out atm.
One can easily try to change the balance of those payments and, for example, only use federal funds if the locals can't get enough money but just cutting something and calling it compassion is dirt-cheap rand-ism, IMHO.
