What Supreme Court Said About Rare Power Trump Uses To Defy Congress
The Trump administration is blocking $810 million of congressionally approved spending using a controversial legal tactic.
On Friday, President Trump announced the use of a pocket rescission to cut $810 million in congressionally approved spending related to minority groups, immigrants and research programs. This is the second time Trump has employed this controversial tactic, previously withholding $4 billion in spending from USAID and the State Department before the fiscal year ended in September.
Critics argue that this move is illegal, as it allows the president to bypass Congress's power of the purse, which is granted in Article One of the Constitution. The Trump administration claims the power is granted by the 1974 Impoundment Control Act, providing a 45-day window for Congress to accept or reject the president's proposal.
However, with the fiscal year ending on September 30 and Congress not expected to return until after the November midterm elections, the spending is likely to remain blocked. This tactic has been condemned by Senator Susan Collins, the Republican chair of the Senate Appropriation Committee, who called it "unlawful and not permitted by the Impoundment Control Act."
The Supreme Court recently approved a stay of an injunction that would have required the $4.9 billion to be distributed as Congress intended, once again blocking the spending. Justice Kagan, writing in dissent, argued that the president's move amounted to a "presidential usurpation of Congress's power of the purse" and that the administration had not demonstrated irreparable harm or a strong likelihood of success on the merits.
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