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The Supreme Court blocked a judge’s order giving the Trump administration a midnight deadline to unfreeze billions of dollars in U.S. foreign aid.
Chief Justice John Roberts stated that the order by Biden-appointed U.S. District Judge Amir Ali will remain on hold until the court has an opportunity to review the case.
“The court’s 11:59 p.m. 30-some-hour deadline thus moved all the goalposts,” acting Solicitor General Sarah Harris wrote in the application. “It is not tailored to any actual payment deadlines associated with respondents’ invoices or drawn-down requests, or anyone else’s. And it has thrown what should be an orderly review by the government into chaos.”
Harris also noted the problems with the judge’s arbitrary deadline in the case related to the Trump administration’s efforts to cut waste from government spending.
“What the government cannot do is pay arbitrarily determined demands on an arbitrary timeline of the district court’s choosing or according to extra-contractual rules that the court has devised,” Harris said. “That mandate creates an untenable payment plan at odds with the president’s obligations.”
The next deadline has not been announced.
The Trump administration announced plans to eliminate 5,800 out of 6,200 multiyear USAID contract awards, resulting in a $54 billion reduction. Additionally, 4,100 of 9,100 State Department grants were set to be cut, reducing funding by $4.4 billion.
A State Department memo, initially reported by the Washington Free Beacon, indicated that the decision was driven by a federal court order requiring officials to lift the administration’s monthlong freeze on foreign aid funding by the end of the day Wednesday.
The Trump administration announced on Sunday that it is ending at least 1,600 jobs at USAID and placing most others on leave.
The decision was announced after a federal judge on Friday allowed the administration to continue its plan to cut USAID staff jobs in the U.S. and internationally.
“As of 11:59 p.m. EST on Sunday, February 23, 2025, all USAID direct hire personnel, with the exception of designated personnel responsible for mission-critical functions, core leadership and/or specially designated programs, will be placed on administrative leave globally,” according to the notices sent to USAID workers that were viewed by The Associated Press.
Pete Marocco, a current Trump-appointed USAID leader, has indicated he plans to keep about 600 mostly U.S.-based staff members who will arrange travel for international staff members to return home.