President Donald Trump's administration has filed an emergency request to the U.S. Supreme Court asking the top court to allow the administration to freeze billions in foreign aid, The Washington Post reported Monday.
The request comes after a U.S. appeals court Friday declined to block a lower court ruling that said the Trump administration could not unilaterally cut billions of dollars of foreign aid authorized by Congress.
Trump vowed on the campaign trail to "end free foreign aid," and used the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) team to investigate waste, fraud, and abuse.
In one of Trump's first moves in his second term, he halted about $30 billion in foreign assistance routed through the State Department and USAID. Congressional Democrats estimate roughly $430 billion in spending is now on hold, with critics arguing the actions violate the Constitution's grant of spending authority to Congress.
U.S. District Judge Amir H. Ali last week issued a new preliminary injunction, ruling the freeze violated the 2024 Appropriations Act. About $11.5 billion in aid is set to expire Sept. 30, though Ali suggested he could extend the deadline.
The legal fight has already reached the high court once this year, and justices have previously allowed Trump to pause other grants, including $800 million in NIH funding and $65 million for education programs. A separate attempt by the administration to delay $5 billion in aid through a "pocket rescission" was blocked by a federal judge last week.
Newsmax writer Eric Mack contributed to this Reuters and Post report.
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