White House reaction combines confusion on federal funding freeze: NPR

Management and budget office has canceled Its call for a stagnation on federal aidAccording to the agency’s memorandum shared by Democracy Forward, which led a legal challenge on the attempt. But the White House stated that only the original memorandum for the freeze was canceled.

The new memorandum says that the heads of executive departments and agencies should contact their general counsels “if you have questions about implementing the President’s executive orders.”

Democracy Forward said in a statement, “In view of the legal pressure from our customers and in our case the decision of a federal judge in our case last evening, the Trump-Wance administration has left the OMB’s Federal Funding Freeze.” “We are proud of our courageous customers – who represent communities across the country – to go to court to stop the illegal functions of administration.”

But White House spokesman Karolin Levit told reporters that the move only means a recession of the memorandum.

He said that “Efforts to end the egoistic waste of federal funding” would continue. He said that OMB Memo has been canceled to eliminate any confusion on the federal policy made by the court and the federal policy created by the unscrupulous media coverage. ” The administration hopes that the court case against it will be abolished by saving the memo.

Initially, after a widespread confusion from very broader memmo, after calling for a stop in pending reviews, the White House on Tuesday tried to clarify which programs would not be affected, later it later Specifying that it will not affect Medicade and SNAP programs, for example.

This latest statement of the White House is likely to connect confusion instead of clarifying it.

Wednesday’s developments follow the order of a federal judge on Tuesday that temporarily blocked the grant and attempt to prevent federal payment for other programs.

Under the original OMB memorandum NPR obtained by NPRA temporary break in funding was scheduled to be effective on Tuesday evening, but a senior administration official said that if an agency determined its programs, this stagnation could be reduced as one day.

The official said that the instructions should not be interpreted as a complete funding freeze. Officials, who were not authorized to discuss the internal memorandum in public, said that agencies are going to review their grants, loans and programs to ensure that they align with new administration priorities. .

Administration officials have insisted that the effects are misunderstood, but the actual text of the memo is far -reaching and follow -up guidance is unclear. Tuesday afternoon, White House A fact sheet released He said that “the break does not apply the whole-board” and that “any program that provides direct benefits to Americans”-such as social security, medicare and food stamps-“is clearly excluded. “

The memo spent on Tuesday attracted legal challenges on Tuesday.

On Tuesday, non -profit organizations claimed to be temporary In their filing This memorandum “fails to explain the source of OMB’s alleged legal right to intestate each grant program in the federal government.” The groups also said that the memo failed to consider the interests of the grant recipients, including those who were already promised. “

Shortly after the decision of the federal judge on Tuesday, a group of lawyers from 22 states and Columbia district filed a separate challenge in the federal court.

Congress response

The order provided an initial litmus test, which would be interested in the Congress’s Republican to reduce the power of the purse for its party leader – even temporarily.

The order came late on Monday night, as the House Republican gathered at an annual conference in Trump’s backyard at its doral golf course and resort.

And, big and big, most of the Congress Republicans who talked about the memo, said that it was an end to implement Trump’s agenda, which is their privilege.

House speaker Mike Johnson called it “an application of general knowledge”, and said it would “finally be harmless.”

At least one person in the retreat, rape. Don Beckon, R-Nab., ​​Said that one head would have been helpful.

He said, “If we do not know what we don’t know what is coming and what it really mean? And I am getting concentors, then it is just a part of life,” he said.

Back to Capital Hill, North Dakota Sen Kevin Kramer admitted the move that the Congress’s rights are questioned, but he said he was not worried.

“(Trump) tests his own rights,” Kramer told reporters to reporters on Tuesday afternoon. “They are getting some guidance that the presidents have more rights than traditionally used.”

Craermer said he supports a break to reevaluate the expenses, although he said the move would face legal challenges and the decision called “the major test of the isolation of the powers”.

Idaho Sen Jim Sixth placed it more clearly.

“For all of you who have not paid attention, this is a different day in Washington, DC,” he told reporters on Tuesday.