Democrats coordinate multi-state response to Trump's funding freeze

Morally indignant Senate Democrats piled connected President Donald Trump's national backing frost Wednesday, with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., announcing a coordinated effect with Democratic governors to come.

The Office of Management and Budget issued a memo connected Monday issuing a intermission connected each national grants and loans aiming to eradicate "wokeness" and the "weaponization of government" to amended authorities efficiency. The memo claims astir $3 trillion was spent successful 2024 connected specified assistance programs. 

The White House insists this frost does not interaction programs including Social Security, Medicare, oregon different entitlement payments, but Schumer called Trump's enactment "chaotic," "careless," and "cruel" astatine the Democratic leadership's play property briefing. 

"In 1 instant, successful the blink of an eye, successful the acheronian of night, Donald Trump committed 1 of the cruelest actions that I person seen the national authorities bash successful a precise agelong time," Schumer said, claiming Trump had unopen disconnected "billions, possibly trillions of dollars that mean American families need." 

FEDERAL JUDGE PAUSES TRUMP ADMIN'S TEMPORARY FEDERAL GRANTS, LOANS FREEZE

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) speaks connected the Trump Administration's national aerial frost during a property league astatine the U.S. Capitol connected Jan. 29, 2025, successful Washington, D.C. Also pictured is Sen. Martin Heinrich, D-N.M. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

The number person said determination are ongoing discussions betwixt Capitol Hill Democrats and assorted Democratic governors connected a coordinated effect to Trump's action. Two twelve bluish authorities attorneys wide person already announced ineligible enactment to support the national grant, indebtedness and different assistance flowing. 

Democrats said they person received an avalanche of telephone calls from section officials, non-governmental organizations, charities and idiosyncratic constituents demanding to cognize if OMB's memo meant payer dollars they trust connected to service radical were astir to disappear.

"Chaos reigned. I got calls from a full batch of Republican municipality supervisors and mayors, asking, what astir flood prevention? What astir sewer operation projects?" Schumer said. He recounted further calls from nutrient slope operators, nonprofit groups that dainty addiction and religion groups disquieted they would not beryllium capable to marque payroll.

White House property caput Karoline Leavitt told reporters Tuesday that the OMB memo would not interaction individuals who person nonstop assistance from the national government. She described the intermission arsenic "temporary" and likened it to simultaneous efforts by the Trump medication to frost hiring and regulations successful an effort to shrink the government. 

FACT OR FICTION: WILL TRUMP'S FEDERAL FUNDING FREEZE IMPACT STUDENT LOANS, GRANTS?

Schumer points to a illustration showing programs astatine hazard from Trump's national backing freeze.  (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

"Federal agencies indispensable temporarily intermission each activities related to work oregon disbursement of each Federal fiscal assistance, and different applicable bureau activities that whitethorn beryllium implicated by the enforcement orders, including, but not constricted to, fiscal assistance for overseas aid, nongovernmental organizations, DEI, woke sex ideology, and the greenish caller deal," the memo, obtained by Fox Digital, reads. 

A national justice connected Tuesday imposed a enactment connected Trump's action, delaying it until Monday arsenic a torrent of lawsuits against the medication were announced this week.

New York Attorney General Letitia James connected Tuesday led a conjugation of 22 different attorneys wide suing to halt the implementation of the memo.

In a connection from James' office, she said the argumentation "puts an indefinite intermission connected the bulk of national assistance to states" and would "immediately jeopardize authorities programs that supply captious wellness and childcare services to families successful need, present enactment to nationalist schools, combat hatred crimes and unit against women, supply life-saving catastrophe alleviation to states, and more."

‘ANSWERED THIS QUESTION FOUR TIMES’: LEAVITT PUSHES BACK ON MEDIA'S ‘UNCERTAINTY’ ABOUT FEDERAL FUNDING FREEZE

President Donald Trump signs enforcement orders successful the Oval Office connected January 20, 2025 successful Washington, DC. Trump takes bureau for his 2nd word arsenic the 47th president of the United States (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

Republicans person mostly backed Trump, insisting that the caller statesmanlike medication has a close to analyse however payer dollars are spent.

"This is not antithetic for an medication to intermission backing and to instrumentality a hard look and scrub of however these programs are being spent and however they interact with a batch of the enforcement orders that the president signed," Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., told reporters, though helium expressed anticipation that the White House would "further clarify what precisely volition beryllium impacted by this." 

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Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., the apical Democratic appropriator, said Trump's actions person endangered chances for a bipartisan spending statement erstwhile the authorities backing deadline arrives successful March.

"It is highly hard to hold to a compromise connected thing if the White House is going to asseverate that they power the funds, we don't," Murray said. "So this is truly putting that successful jeopardy."