WASHINGTON — On Tuesday, Chief Justice John Roberts made a big decision: he temporarily delayed a lower court judgment that instructed the Trump administration to release roughly $5 billion in frozen foreign aid. The administration filed an emergency appeal, and this judgment is a temporary one. It shows that the Supreme Court is willing to look at the president’s claim of authority to withhold congressionally approved monies.
The “pocket rescission,” which is a very unique and controversial way to change a budget, is the main issue in the lawsuit. On August 28, President Donald Trump told Congress that he would not spend $4.9 billion in foreign aid that Congress had already approved. A pocket rescission occurs when a president asks Congress to cancel funding so close to the end of the fiscal year (September 30) that Congress can’t act on the request within the 45-day deadline. The money then goes unspent, which lets the president trim the budget without having to gain consent from Congress. A president hasn’t used this power in almost 50 years.
A federal appeals court had just turned down a request to stop a lower court’s preliminary injunction from U.S. District Judge Amir Ali, which said that the government had to spend the money. Last week, Judge Ali said that Congress would have to agree to the decision to withhold the money. He said that the Impoundment Control Act of 1974 makes it plain that only Congress can trigger a rescission.
Chief Justice Roberts has given the plaintiffs—an alliance of foreign assistance groups and organizations—until Friday to respond to the administration’s emergency appeal in his temporary ruling.
The matter has been going through the courts for months, and Judge Ali had already said that his decision was not likely to be the last one. He said that the case “raises questions of great legal and practical importance,” such as whether there is any way to challenge the executive branch’s choice not to spend money that Congress has set aside for it.
Despite warnings from critics about how it could hurt America’s reputation throughout the world and hurt people who depend on food and development programs, the Trump administration has made large cutbacks to foreign aid a key part of its agenda. Lawyers from the Justice Department said that another $6.5 billion in aid, which was also frozen, will be used up by the end of the fiscal year on September 30.
The outcome of this case could have a big effect on the balance of power between the executive and legislative branches, especially when it comes to Congress’s constitutional “power of the purse.”