Trump says Jan. 6 pardons coming 'first day,' lays out plans
President-elect Donald Trump on "Meet the Press" Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024 (NBC News/YouTube).

President Donald Trump on “Meet the Press” Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024 (NBC News/YouTube).

A federal court in Rhode Island has put a temporary halt on the Trump administration’s decision to freeze federal aid programs. This happened shortly after the White House withdrew the memo that initially caused confusion and disruptions for nonprofits and federal aid programs.

U.S. District Judge John McConnell on Wednesday became the second federal judge to block the policy in less than 24 hours.

During a hearing, McConnell pointed out that the White House’s attempt to clarify the ambiguous directives in the memo from the Office of Management and Budget only created more chaos. This meant that the court still had jurisdiction over the order, at least for the time being, as reported by Politico.

McConnell expressed his inclination to grant the restraining order during the hearing, stating, “I fear … that the administration is acting with a distinction without a difference.”

The OMB memo, which was sent out Tuesday morning, stated the following (bold in original):

“[T]o the extent permissible under applicable law, Federal agencies must temporarily pause all activities related to obligation or disbursement of all Federal financial assistance, and other relevant agency activities that may be implicated by the executive orders, including, but not limited to, financial assistance for foreign aid, nongovernmental organizations, DEI, woke gender ideology, and the green new deal.”

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