Judge orders Trump administration to temporarily restore funding for foreign assistance programs

Washington — A federal judge on Thursday ordered the Trump administration to reinstate funding for foreign aid contracts and other awards while litigation moves forward, delivering yet another setback for the president as he seeks to make sweeping changes to the federal government.  

U.S. District Judge Amir Ali partially granted a request for a temporary restraining order from a group of organizations that receive funding from the U.S. Agency for International Development, or USAID, and other agencies, but have since been cut off from federal dollars or had to suspend their work in the wake of Mr. Trump’s executive action ordering a 90-day pause on foreign development aid.

The nonprofit organizations argued that Mr. Trump’s directive and a subsequent memorandum from Secretary of State Marco Rubio issued late last month, which temporarily stopped new obligations of funding for foreign assistance programs and called for stop-work orders, was an unlawful and unconstitutional exercise of executive power.

They warned that the directive has “created chaos in the funding and administration” of USAID and other foreign assistance programs.

“One cannot overstate the impact of that unlawful course of conduct: on businesses large and small forced to shut down their programs and let employees go; on hungry children across the globe who will go without; on populations around the world facing deadly disease; and on our constitutional order,” lawyers for one group of challengers, led by the Global Health Council, wrote in a court filing.

Ali, appointed by former President Joe Biden, blocked top Trump administration officials from enforcing a pause on foreign assistance funded through the State Department or USAID without authorization and halting new obligations of funding for foreign assistance programs pending a review. He also barred the administration from suspending contracts, grants or other foreign assistance awards that were in effect as of Jan. 19 and issuing stop-work orders in connection with foreign aid awards that were in existence before Mr. Trump returned to the White House.

The judge said at the current stage of litigation, the nonprofit organizations met their burden for temporary, emergency relief, but that their request was too broad. But Ali found the groups were likely to succeed on the merits of their claims and made a “strong preliminary showing that they were likely to suffer irreparable harm.”

“Here, the stated purpose in implementing the suspension of all foreign aid is to provide the opportunity to review programs for their efficiency and consistency with priorities,” Ali wrote. “However, at least to date, Defendants have not offered any explanation for why a blanket suspension of all congressionally appropriated foreign aid, which set off a shockwave and upended reliance interests for thousands of agreements with businesses, nonprofits, and organizations around the country, was a rational precursor to reviewing programs.”

In a hearing held Wednesday, Stephen Wirth, a lawyer representing one group of seven nonprofits, said his clients have been “devastated” by Mr. Trump’s executive order. He warned that as a result of the freeze on funding for foreign assistance programs, small businesses have been forced to shutter, food for starving populations abroad is rotting in ports and warehouses, and medical supplies are expiring.

Additionally, at least one group, Democracy International, an international development company that conducts projects for USAID, has had to furlough all 95 of its U.S.-based workers and 93% of its employees working on USAID projects in overseas offices, Wirth said. 

The federal government, he said, is terminating contracts “en masse.”

Lawyers for the nonprofits said that organizations that receive foreign assistance grants have tried to draw down funding from USAID and the State Department, but have not been able to access their funds. In other instances, groups have had contracts terminated and pending invoices for completed work have not been paid, Wirth said.

At least 230 USAID grants and contracts have been terminated or been subject to stop-work orders since Tuesday, Justice Department lawyers said in a filing.

The Trump administration has argued that its decision to issue the 90-day pause on U.S. foreign development assistance allows it to ensure that the projects the U.S. is supporting align with the administration’s foreign policy.

Eric Hamilton, deputy assistant attorney general, said during the hearing that the issue is about how money that has been appropriated by Congress is being spent. He argued federal laws governing foreign assistance allow the president to determine how those funds should be used.

He also noted that Rubio has approved a waiver for life-saving humanitarian assistance programs.

The cases before Ali arose from recent efforts by the Trump administration to overhaul USAID, which was founded in 1961 and is an independent agency. Its operations have been in turmoil over the past few weeks amid the Trump administration’s freeze on foreign assistance funding and stop-work orders for USAID contractors and agency partners. The administration also moved to shut down overseas USAID missions and recall thousands of employees living and working abroad. The administration last week placed thousands of USAID employees on administrative leave and closed the aid agency’s Washington, D.C., headquarters to staff.

But some of Mr. Trump’s efforts have been stopped by another federal judge in Washington in a separate case brought by labor unions.

U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols, appointed by Mr. Trump, temporarily prohibited the government from placing more than 2,000 employees on administrative leave. He also ordered the administration to reinstate employees already on leave and blocked expedited evacuations of USAID employees from their host countries.

contributed to this report.