Donald Trump’s attempt to put the brakes on U.S. foreign aid spending has hit a wall. A federal appeals court in Washington has refused to let the administration hold back billions of dollars that Congress had already approved, siding with a lower court’s ruling that the White House cannot unilaterally choke off the money flow.
At the center of the fight: roughly $11 billion in aid set to expire at the end of September. While the administration had pledged to release about $6.5 billion, it tried to keep $4 billion locked away—much of it tied to the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), which Trump has moved aggressively to dismantle.
The appeals court offered little explanation for its ruling, other than noting the administration had not met the “stringent requirements” needed to pause the lower court’s order. One judge, a Trump appointee, dissented, saying the freeze should have been allowed while the case winds through the courts.
Earlier in the week, District Judge Amir Ali was blunt: the president cannot simply ignore Congress and refuse to spend appropriated funds. Unless lawmakers step in and change the law, Ali ruled, the money must go where Congress directed it—whether the White House likes it or not.
The administration had floated a maneuver known as a “pocket rescission”—withholding funds for 45 days in hopes of running down the clock until the fiscal year ends on September 30. Trump’s budget director pointed out that presidents have used the tactic before, but the judge wasn’t persuaded.
If the courts hold firm, the ruling will force Trump to release funds earmarked for everything from U.N. peacekeeping to pro-democracy projects abroad. The Supreme Court has already stepped into the fight once, telling the administration it must pay aid groups for work already completed.
For now, the message from the judiciary is clear: Congress controls the purse, and the president cannot unilaterally slam it shut.
