President Donald Trump’s attempt to halt federal funding while his administration undertakes a comprehensive ideological review to dismantle leftist policies was temporarily stopped by a federal judge on Tuesday.
A constitutional conflict over control of taxpayer funds was sparked by the Trump administration’s plan, which sent the American government into a state of panic and bewilderment.
Minutes before the funding freeze was set to take effect, U.S. District Judge Loren L. AliKhan issued the ruling. Only currently running programs are subject to the administrative stay, which ends on Monday afternoon.
In order to make sure that spending complies with Trump’s recent flurry of executive orders, administration officials said the decision to stop loans and grants—a financial lifeline for local governments, schools, and nonprofit organizations nationwide—was required. The Republican president wants to stop diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, increase the production of fossil fuels, and eliminate safeguards for transgender individuals.
The Office of Management and Budget’s ambiguous memo and the White House’s partial responses throughout the day, however, left lawmakers, public officials, and regular citizens unable to determine which programs would be impacted by the suspension. Layoffs or delays in public services could result from even brief financial disruptions.
According to David Smith, a spokesman for the Shawnee Mission School District in Kansas, one of the innumerable districts that receive federal funds, this kind of came out of the blue. They are currently attempting to deduce its meaning from no information.
In suspending the freeze, AliKhan, who was nominated by President Joe Biden, stated that it appears the federal government is now unaware of the entire scope of the programs that will be affected by the suspension.
Tens of thousands of members nationwide may be impacted, according to Jessica Morton, an attorney with the National Council of Nonprofits, the organization that filed the lawsuit.
According to Morton, “our client members have expressed great concern about having to shutter if there is even a brief pause.”
According to Daniel Schwei, an attorney with the Justice Department, the plaintiffs had not named a single individual who would immediately lose funds in the event that the pause took effect.
Programs like Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, student loans, and food stamps that directly help Americans would not be impacted, according to Trump administration officials. Additionally, they defended the funding freeze, claiming that Trump was fulfilling his pledge to completely transform Washington if he were elected to a second term.
But even outside of the country’s capital, the impacts were being felt. Meals on Wheels, a federally funded organization that provides food to the elderly, was concerned about being disconnected.
Chaos is being caused by the current lack of clarity and uncertainty, according to spokeswoman Jenny Young. Seniors may become anxious if they don’t know where they’ll get their next meals, she added.
This week’s grant application review panels were postponed by the National Science Foundation. Prichard, Alabama, officials were afraid they wouldn’t get the infrastructure money they needed to repair their drinking water system that was leaking. Republican leaders in Louisiana stated that they were looking for clarification to make sure nothing was endangering the state’s financial viability.
Sen. Patty Murray of Washington, the leading Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee, stated that Trump’s actions would cause chaos in both red and blue towns across the globe. We are discussing our cities, our school systems, and our little villages.
A 51-page spreadsheet that was emailed to federal agencies and seen by The Associated Press detailed the entire extent of the administration’s assessment. Every line represented a distinct government program, ranging from special education to workforce development for Tribes to pool safety.
For each item on the list, including whether this program promotes gender ideology, officials were instructed to respond with a series of yes/no questions. Or does this program in any way encourage or endorse abortion? By February 7th, responses are required.
Potentially, trillions of dollars are being examined. Grants that have been awarded but not spent are also supposed to be halted if they might violate one of Trump s executive orders.
In a memo released Monday, Matthew Vaeth, acting director of the Office of Management and Budget, stated that using Federal funds to promote Marxist equity, transgenderism, and green new deal social engineering policies is a waste of taxpayer dollars and does not enhance the daily lives of people we serve.
Vaeth wrote that each agency must complete a comprehensive analysis of all of their Federal financial assistance programs to identify programs, projects, and activities that may be implicated by any of the President s executive orders. Additionally, he added that the delay should be put into effect to the degree that the relevant laws permit.
The pause on grants and loans was scheduled to take effect at 5 p.m. ET, just one day after agencies were informed of the decision.
Democrats described the Trump administration s decision as capricious and illegal. They argued that the president had no right to unilaterally stop spending money appropriated by Congress.
New York Attorney General Letitia James planned to ask a Manhattan federal court to block the funding pause.
There is no question this policy is reckless, dangerous, illegal and unconstitutional, she said.
Separately, a group of nonprofit organizations filed a lawsuit in Washington saying that the funding pause is devoid of any legal basis or the barest rationale.
The issue dominated the first briefing held by White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt. She said the administration was trying to be good stewards of public money by making sure that there was no more funding for transgenderism and wokeness.
She denied that Trump was deliberately challenging Congress to establish his dominance over the federal budget.
He s just trying to ensure that the tax money going out the door in this very bankrupt city actually aligns with the will and the priorities of the American people, she said.
The Environmental Protection Agency confirmed that it would implement the pause to align federal spending and action with the will of the American people as expressed through President Trump s priorities. The Department of Energy also said it was conducting a review of its spending.
The funding pause is the latest example of how Trump is harnessing his power over the federal system to advance his conservative goals. This time, Trump is delving deeply into the bureaucracy, unlike during his first term when he and many of his inner circle were unfamiliar with Washington.
For example, federal employees are being asked to report their colleagues if they try to continue diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.
According to Paul Light, a federal government expert and professor emeritus of public service at New York University, they are advancing the president’s agenda from the bottom up.
He said that Trump’s strategy has risks, particularly given how dependent so many voters are on Washington.
You can t just hassle, hassle, hassle, Light said. It’s your responsibility.
Fears about interruption in government services were exacerbated as states reported problems with the Medicaid funding portal, where officials request reimbursement for providing healthcare to poor residents.
Democrats condemned the Trump administration, connecting the issue to the funding pause.
But Leavitt said the portal would be back online soon.
We have confirmed no payments have been affected they are still being processed and sent, she posted on social media.
By CHRIS MEGERIAN Associated Press
Associated Press writers JoNel Aleccia, Moriah Balingit, Collin Binkley, Matthew Daly, Lisa Mascaro, Adithi Ramakrishnan, Amanda Seitz, Michael Sisak, Lindsay Whitehurst and Tammy Weber contributed to this report.
