Judge Amir Ali orders the Trump administration to pay $2 billion in USAID funds
A federal judge has ordered the Trump administration to pay the remaining foreign aid owed to contractors for completed work, asserting that the administration likely violated the separation of powers doctrine by unlawfully impounding nearly $2 billion in funds appropriated by Congress.
U.S. District Court Judge Amir Ali, who was appointed by President Biden, stated in the ruling that the Trump administration exceeded its Constitutional authorities by attempting to block payments owed by the State Department and USAID to grant recipients and foreign aid contractors.
“The executive has unilaterally deemed that funds Congress appropriated for foreign aid will not be spent,” Ali said. “The executive not only claims his constitutional authority to determine how to spend appropriated funds but usurps Congress’s exclusive authority to dictate whether the funds should be spent in the first place.”
The case specifically focused on projects completed before Feb. 13, with the government owing around $671 million as of last Friday. Ali ordered the plaintiffs to file a joint status report by March 14 to update the court on the Trump administration’s compliance with the order and propose a schedule for next steps in the matter.
President Trump had attempted to freeze USAID payments after Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) raised concerns about the wasteful and fraudulent spending of foreign aid. Trump issued an executive order on Jan. 20 freezing nearly all foreign aid payments and a memo four days later that curtailed funding and restructured existing contracts.
Ali dedicated a significant portion of the ruling to arguments that the Trump administration had overstepped its executive authority under the Constitution. The Supreme Court rejected the administration’s request to extend the freeze in a 5-4 ruling, remanding the case back to the D.C. federal court for further review.
The hearing in D.C. federal court last week primarily focused on the government’s role and review of all foreign aid contractors and grants, with Trump administration lawyers claiming they had already completed the review and made final decisions. Ali questioned the legality of terminating projects whose funds were allocated by Congress, emphasizing the joint enterprise between the political branches in providing foreign aid.
The ruling from Ali could potentially lead to an appeal to the Supreme Court by the government. As the case progresses, the partnership between the executive and legislative branches in foreign aid provision may face further scrutiny and clarification in the legal arena.
