A federal judge in Rhode Island has issued a formal order blocking the Trump administration's spending freeze, citing concerns that the president's actions may violate the Constitution and federal statutes. The judge's ruling comes after the administration issued a memo instructing agencies to halt federal loans and grants, prompting a lawsuit from 22 state attorneys general.
A federal judge in Rhode Island has issued a formal order blocking the Trump administration's spending freeze . Judge John McConnell Jr. stated in his order that during the temporary restraining period, the defendants are prohibited from pausing, freezing, impeding, blocking, canceling, or terminating their compliance with awards and obligations to provide federal financial assistance to the states.
Additionally, the defendants are barred from obstructing the states' access to these awards and obligations, except on the basis of applicable authorizing statutes, regulations, and terms. Judge McConnell declared in his 13-page decision that the current evidence supports the likelihood of a successful claim that the Executive's actions violate the Constitution and statutes of the United States. This ruling comes in response to a lawsuit filed by 22 state attorneys general. Earlier this week, McConnell signaled his intention to issue a temporary restraining order preventing the Trump administration from freezing federal loans and grants, raising concerns that the White House might attempt to implement the policy outlined in the now-rescinded Office of Management and Budget memo. The administration issued the memo on Monday night, imposing a 5 p.m. deadline on Wednesday for agencies to comply. However, a Washington, D.C., federal judge temporarily blocked its implementation following a lawsuit. Even after the OMB rescinded the memo on Wednesday, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt posted on X, asserting that 'This is NOT a rescission of the federal funding freeze. It is simply a rescission of the OMB memo. Why? To end any confusion created by the court's injunction. The President's EO's on federal funding remain in full force and effect and will be rigorously implemented.' Leavitt's post, which appeared to attempt to circumvent the injunction, was mentioned in McConnell's order, where he wrote, 'Defendants shall also be restrained and prohibited from reissuing, adopting, implementing, or otherwise giving effect to the OMB Directive under any other name or title or through any other Defendants (or agency supervised, administered, or controlled by any Defendant), such as the continued implementation identified by the White House Press Secretarys statement of January 29, 2025.' McConnell criticized the Trump administration and justified his order, even after the OMB's policy change, based on Leavitt's statement. 'The evidence shows that the alleged rescission of the OMB Directive was in name-only and may have been issued simply to defeat the jurisdiction of the courts,' he wrote
Trump Administration Spending Freeze Federal Funding Constitutional Violations Judge Mcconnell OMB Memo
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