Chief Justice John Roberts has halted a court order that mandated the Trump administration deploy $5 billion in foreign aid, temporarily pausing the spending.
Late last month, The Dallas Express reported that President Trump was aiming to cut $5 billion in foreign aid through a historic “pocket rescission.” The administration argued the money was being allocated to “woke, weaponized, and wasteful spending.”
The latest move provides the Supreme Court justices with additional time to consider the administration’s request to keep the funds frozen, which are required to be spent by September 30, 2025.
Despite the backing, the stay is temporary and could be replaced later this week. Roberts has ordered the affected aid groups to respond by noon Friday.
“Development Assistance has provided endless handouts that allow recipient governments to eschew responsibilities to their own citizens, rather than equipping countries to build their own workforces and self-reliance. This account has been used to fund radical, leftist priorities, including climate change, diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), LGBTQ activities, and other projects like baking and beauty therapy in Zimbabwe that are of no value to American taxpayers and American foreign policy interests,” the White House said of the cut to USAID in the August 29 briefing.
Congress previously set aside the money the Trump administration wants to keep frozen for foreign aid, democracy promotion, and U.N. peacekeeping. Last year, Congress allocated billions toward foreign aid, including $11 billion that must be spent or committed by September 30. Failing to do so renders the funding expired.