SCOTUS: Trump Administration Must Disburse $2 Billion in USAID Funds

The Supreme Court Wednesday denied the Trump administration’s appeal to block an order by a lower court judge requiring the federal government to pay out $2 billion in foreign aid funds. The order was initially given by a DC circuit court judge, who issued a temporary restraining order on the Trump administration’s decision to halt payments being made to USAID contractors.

The 5–4 ruling was accompanied by a strongly-worded dissent. Associate Justice Samuel Alito, who was joined in his dissent by Associate Justices Clarence Thomas, Neil Gorsuch, and Brett Kavanaugh, wrote,

Does a single district-court judge who likely lacks jurisdiction have the unchecked power to compel the Government of the United States to pay out (and probably lose forever) 2 billion taxpayer dollars? The answer to that question should be an emphatic “No,” but a majority of this Court apparently thinks otherwise. I am stunned.

The Trump administration had argued that the restraining order infringed on the executive branch’s legitimate powers and provided for an unrealistic timeline for compliance. The Supreme Court did ask the lower court to reconsider the timeline granted to the government for feasibility.

The defeat is a potentially serious setback for the Trump administration, which is faced with over a hundred lawsuits and a number of broad injunctions from lower courts, which it sees as improperly infringing on the power of the executive branch.