JUST IN: Trump Notches Critical Legal Victory

A Washington, D.C. federal court handed the Trump administration another significant victory on Wednesday, ruling that the State Department is not required to continue sending U.S. dollars to overseas nations.

In a 2-1 decision, a panel of judges for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled that a lower court erred when it required the Trump administration to continue making payments to foreign countries that were previously appropriated by Congress.

The president took office and immediately imposed a 90-day pause on all foreign assistance, an effort augmented by the establishment of the Department of Government Efficiency and the gutting of USAID. The main foreign assistance arm of the federal government was effectively shuttered as thousands of employees were fired and outside contractors were brought under the umbrella of the State Department.

U.S. District Judge Amir Ali, a Biden appointee, previously sided with two nonprofits that sued in response to Trump’s 90-day pause. The decision compelled Trump to continue making $2 billion in payments worldwide while an appeal was sought.

Circuit Judge Karen Henderson, writing for the majority, stated the plaintiffs “lack a cause of action to press their claims” and therefore fail to meet the requirements for an injunction.

Henderson, a Reagan appointee, noted that the court’s decision does not reflect whether the 90-day pause by Trump was constitutional, as it infringes on Congress’s power of the purse.

Circuit Judge Florence Pan, a Biden appointee, responded in a sharp dissent, accusing her colleagues of allowing President Trump to flout federal law.

“The court’s acquiescence in and facilitation of the Executive’s unlawful behavior derails the carefully crafted system of checked and balanced power that serves as the greatest security against tyranny – the accumulation of excessive authority in a single Branch,” Pan wrote, Reuters reported.

Two consolidated cases relate to the fiscal 2024 budget, which is set to expire on September 30. Grantees will lose access to those foreign aid funds unless they receive an explicit injunction or other court order.

Cutting foreign spending from the federal budget hasn’t been smooth sailing for President Trump. In March, he was rebuffed by the U.S. Supreme Court, which declined to hear an appeal of U.S. District Judge Amir Ali’s injunction requiring the $2 billion in spending.

AIDS Vaccine Advocacy Coalition and Journalism Development Network, two nonprofits that brought the suit, alleged the administration was not properly issuing payments in accordance with the injunction.

The U.S. Justice Department responded, saying Ali’s order was “improper judicial intrusion into matters left to the political branches” and that the judge wrongly interfered in the “particularly sensitive area of foreign relations,” Bloomberg reported.