Overview

• U.S. District Judge Amir Ali ordered the administration to make expiring State Department and USAID funds available, rejecting a pocket rescission that would have let money lapse without a congressional vote.
• The White House appealed the ruling, with courts expected to move quickly given the funding expiration at month’s end and the potential for further review up to the Supreme Court.
• Senior Republican appropriators, including Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski, call the maneuver unlawful and warn it undermines Congress’s power of the purse and bipartisan appropriations work.
• Democrats say the move hardens their stance against a short-term funding bill, raising the risk of a partial shutdown as Senate leaders acknowledge a continuing resolution will likely require cross-party votes.
• The rescission targets about $3.2 billion for USAID and $1.7 billion for State programs, with OMB asserting legal authority disputed by GAO’s more recent guidance and by lawmakers in both parties.