A divided federal appeals court panel ruled Wednesday that the Trump administration can continue suspending or terminating billions of dollars in congressionally approved foreign aid. The 2-1 decision from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit reversed a lower court order requiring the administration to release the funds.
On his first day of a second term, President Trump signed an executive order directing the State Department and USAID to halt foreign aid spending. U.S. District Judge Amir Ali had ordered the release of the full 2024 budget allocation, but the appeals court’s majority found the plaintiffs lacked standing for a preliminary injunction.
The funds include nearly $4 billion for global health programs and over $6 billion for HIV and AIDS initiatives. Trump has argued such aid is wasteful and misaligned with his foreign policy.
Judge Florence Pan dissented, writing the president cannot ignore laws for policy reasons and warning the decision could enable executive overreach. Judges Karen LeCraft Henderson and Gregory Katsas joined the majority.
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