Supreme Court Delays Deadline for Trump Administration to Reactivate Foreign Aid Payments Scheduled for Wednesday Night

On February 26, the Supreme Court temporarily stalled a federal judge’s order that required the Trump administration to reinstate $2 billion in foreign aid payments by midnight.

In response, the Trump administration filed an emergency appeal at the Supreme Court on Wednesday night, requesting to postpone the deadline until the motion is fully resolved.

Chief Justice John Roberts stated that the order would remain on hold while the Supreme Court addresses the issue in greater detail.

Earlier this month, U.S. District Judge Amir Ali issued a temporary restraining order directing both USAID and the State Department to restore funding for contracts that existed before January 20 but had been halted by the Trump administration.

The plaintiffs opposing the funding freeze informed the judge that the government had been slow to comply with the order, prompting Judge Ali to mandate that payments resume by midnight on Wednesday.

In the court filing, Acting Solicitor General Sarah Harris argued that the 11:59 p.m. “30-some-hour deadline thus moved all the goalposts.”

“It is not tailored to any specific payment deadlines linked to the respondents’ invoices or drawn-down requests, nor any others. This has thrown what should be an organized government review into disarray,” Harris explained.

She urged the Supreme Court to provide an immediate ruling to halt the midnight deadline until the court can address the motion. Harris noted that the government could not realistically restart payments within the limited timeframe provided.

“Moreover, this order exposes the government to the possibility of contempt proceedings and other penalties,” she added.

President Donald Trump has sought to suspend foreign aid payments as part of efforts to reform USAID, leading to numerous lawsuits from affected organizations.

This past Wednesday, the Trump administration announced plans to cut more than 90 percent of USAID’s foreign aid contracts and $60 billion in global federal assistance. As a result, few contracts for U.S. development and foreign humanitarian aid will remain following these reductions.

A memo outlining the plans indicated that officials were “clearing significant waste stemming from decades of institutional drift.” Furthermore, the administration plans to reveal additional changes in the processes through which the State Department and USAID provide foreign assistance.

On inauguration day, Trump initiated what was described as a 90-day, program-by-program review to identify which foreign aid programs should be sustained by an administration focused on “America First” objectives while suspending foreign assistance almost instantaneously.

The majority of USAID’s staff have either been placed on leave or terminated.

The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.