President Donald Trump is canceling nearly $1 billion in spending approved by Congress, the White House announced on Friday, using a rare and contested power to axe funding for immigrant services and diversity-focused initiatives.
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House → cancel → services
Trump’s Office of Management and Budget described the funding cut as focused on “the most harmful government spending.”
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Office → describe → spending
Most of the cuts are focused on Health and Human Services programs that serve refugees and unaccompanied minors accused of being in the country illegally.
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that → focus → country
The administration says the funds are no longer necessary because illegal border crossings have diminished considerably.
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crossings → say → ?
A White House press release announcing the funding rescissions notes that some of the organizations are led by people who worked in the administration of Democratic President Barack Obama.
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who → announce → Obama
Trump’s move was condemned by Sen. Susan Collins, a Republican in a tough re-election campaign and chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee.
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move → condemn → Committee
Collins said in a statement that the action came without warning or consultation.
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action → say → warning
She also said she would work to address with colleagues “these illegal actions.”
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she → say → actions
“Not only is the delay itself an impoundment that was not reported to Congress, but also it is a usurpation of Congress’s appropriations powers,” Collins said.
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Collins → report → powers
It does not get to decide which programs are worth funding.”
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programs → get → ?
Typically, Congress can review the president’s proposed spending cuts before they take effect.
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they → review → effect
But Trump made that all but impossible by announcing them with just five days left in the federal fiscal year.
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that → make → year
The Government Accountability Office says the maneuver, known as a “pocket rescission,” is illegal.
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maneuver → say → rescission
Collins called it the latest attempt by OMB to “undermine Congress’s Constitutional power of the purse.”
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Collins → call → purse
A year ago, Trump issued a pocket rescission for the first time in 50 years by blocking $4.9 billion in congressionally approved foreign aid.
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Trump → issue → aid
The U.S. Supreme Court declined to block those rescissions, saying that Trump’s authority over foreign affairs weighed heavily in its decision.
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authority → decline → decision
This year, Trump is targeting domestic spending.
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Trump → target → spending
The use of a “pocket rescission” fits into a broader pattern by the Trump administration to exert greater control over the U.S. government, eroding Congress’s power.
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use → fit → power
The administration has also fired federal workers, imposed a historic increase in tariffs, and started the war in Iran without going through Congress, putting the burden on the judicial branch to determine the limits of presidential power.
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administration → fire → power
Sen. Patty Murray, the lead Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee, described the White House action as “theft from the American people, plain and simple.”
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Murray → describe → people
“These are funds Congress has delivered on a bipartisan basis and should be helping people—not cut off by a president more focused on building a ballroom than investing in families,” Murray said.
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Murray → deliver → families
In addition to immigrant services, the White House said it was rescinding $70 million for what it called “woke” international education programs, $28 million in grant funding for Health and Human Services research programs, and $9 million in debt relief for foreign countries that fund climate change policies.
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that → say → policies
Another $10 million was being withheld from a minority business development program.
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million → withhold → program
The Aporia
