500 tonnes of food for foreign aid to expire after USAID reduction
After the Trump administration’s dismantling of USAID, 500 tonnes of food used in foreign emergency will expire and be destroyed.
WASHINGTON – The Supreme Court on September 26th said President Donald Trump doesn’t need to spend billions on foreign aid approved by Congress for now, allowing him to exert greater control over the government, even in areas where the constitution is reserved for lawmakers.
Over the opposition of the three liberals in the court, the conservative majority blocked the federal judge’s ruling that the administration promised to spend $4 billion in foreign aid before the funds expired on September 30.
Supreme Court Justice John Roberts had previously temporarily suspended the ruling to give courts more time to consider Trump’s demands.
The new order said the judicial authorities had no final resolve, but the administration had adequately shown at this stage that the challenges brought by foreign support groups to Trump’s spending freeze were inappropriate.
The majority also said that the president’s ability to manage foreign policy would be more harmed by spending money now than the support groups would be harmed by not getting funds.
But in her opposition, Judge Elena Kagan said the effect of the order was to “prevent the fund from reaching its intended recipients.”
“The results contradict the separation of power, so I respectfully oppose it,” Kagan wrote in the opinion attended by Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Justices Ketanji Brown Jackson.
The administration argued that there was nothing to do as Congress was waiting for Trump to respond to Trump’s demands that funds be cancelled. However, if lawmakers do not act by September 30th, the funds will automatically expire.
Foreign aid groups suing the administration said Trump had created a false emergency by waiting for him to pay the known funds as he must spend at least March.
After taking office in January, Trump has suspended all foreign aid and said any assistance that is not in line with his priorities will end.
In March, Ali ruled that the administration’s funding freeze likely violated both constitutional and federal law.
More recently, Ali wrote in September that the State Department has important discretion on how to spend money, but that it is not discretionary whether it is necessary to use it.
The administration tried to run out of watches through a procedural tactic known as “the withdrawal of the pocket.”
Under the usual withdrawal process, Congress has 45 days to respond to the President’s request that previously approved funds be cancelled.
With the withdrawal of Pocket, the fiscal year will end before 45 days have passed.
The government’s Accountability Office, a nonpartisan watchdog agency, says pocket relief is illegal as it bypasses the power of Congress’ wallets under the Constitution.
“The withdrawal of Pocket allows the president to avoid spending money, regardless of whether Congress approves the request for withdrawal,” the office said in August.
Sen. Susan Collins, a Republican on the Senate Approval Committee, similarly said the administration’s request was “an obvious attempt to withdraw funds allocated without Congressional approval.”
The Justice Department told the Supreme Court it gave Congress “enough time” to meet its demands.
