Washington
Trump’s attempted funding freeze stirs backlash from WA leaders • Washington State Standard
The Trump administration’s move to freeze huge swaths of federal spending drew backlash Tuesday from Democratic officials in Washington and the state’s congressional delegation.
State lawmakers said it further complicates this year’s already difficult budgeting process, while Gov. Bob Ferguson predicted that the courts would determine President Donald Trump is overstepping his executive powers. Washington U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, the top Democrat on the Appropriations Committee, derided Trump’s action as “brazen and illegal.”
Later in the day, a federal judge in the District of Columbia agreed to temporarily block the freeze at least until Feb. 3. This came in response to a lawsuit by the National Council of Nonprofits, the American Public Health Association, and other groups.
Meanwhile, Washington Attorney General Nick Brown announced that the state joined 21 other states in a separate suit against the Trump administration over the attempted funding pause.
Much about the scope and consequences of the directive remained unclear Tuesday afternoon. But critics said it could stymie funding in a range of areas, from child care services to road construction to opioid addiction treatment programs.
“This chaos is already hurting people, causing confusion, and causing devastating delays. I mean where do we start here? There are a lot of urgent questions but precious few answers — and the answers keep changing,” Murray said earlier on Tuesday.
It’s commonly understood that Congress, not the president, holds “the power of the purse.” And Murray’s office emphasized that the Impoundment Control Act of 1974, “makes plain that presidents cannot temporarily or permanently withhold enacted funding, and it established procedures the president can and must follow to propose delaying or rescinding funding.”
The episode began when a memo from the White House Office of Management and Budget emerged Monday calling for a “temporary pause” on federal agency grants, loans and other financial assistance. The memo said it was not intended to apply to “assistance provided directly to individuals,” Social Security, or Medicare, which provides health care coverage for older Americans.
“This temporary pause will provide the Administration time to review agency programs and determine the best uses of the funding for those programs consistent with the law and the President’s priorities,” the memo said.
“The use of Federal resources to advance Marxist equity, transgenderism, and green new deal social engineering policies is a waste of taxpayer dollars,” the memo added.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the pause would not apply to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, also known as food stamps, or welfare benefits. An additional memo from the White House said Medicaid payments would not be disrupted, though there were reports Tuesday that Medicaid portals were down in states across the country.
The Washington State Health Care Authority did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the status of the state’s Medicaid portal. Medicaid is the government health insurance program for people with low incomes.
‘We’re sorting it all out’
State Sen. June Robinson, D-Everett, who chairs the state Senate’s Ways and Means Committee, said the attempted funding pause added “another layer of uncertainty in the budgeting process, but one that we have virtually no control over.”
“It is very alarming, and we have to wait and see what happens,” she added. “If federal funding goes away, we do not have the ability to backfill those dollars.”
Robinson flagged public schools, higher education, housing and domestic violence services as some of the areas where the state depends on federal funding. Washington state lawmakers entered this year’s session facing a budget deficit estimated to be around $12 billion over four years.
Ferguson, in an emailed statement, acknowledged that “presidents have significant powers and elections have consequences.” But he added “President Trump’s refusal or inability to advance his priorities in a lawful and constitutional manner is creating needless and cruel chaos.”
A spokesperson for the governor’s office did not respond to questions about whether any state agencies experienced turmoil on Tuesday because of the Trump administration’s maneuver.
The state’s Department of Commerce and the Department of Social and Health Services both said it was too early to know how the action by the Trump administration might affect operations.
“We’re sorting it all out,” said Penny Thomas, a Department of Commerce spokesperson.
Joel Ryan, executive director of the association in Washington that advocates for the Head Start and Early Childhood Education and Assistance programs, said the Trump administration memo “led to complete chaos as several Head Start programs prepared to close their doors” and worried about making payroll.
The Office of Management and Budget later said Head Start programs, which provide early learning services and other supports to kids up to 5, were not covered by the pause, according to Ryan.
“Even after that clarification, the payment portal remained down for several hours making federal funding inaccessible,” he said. “We also continue to be concerned about other grant programs that impact young children like the child care food program which Head Start programs rely upon to serve healthy meals and snacks to low-income children.”
An 18-year-old who was shot and wounded in Northwest D.C.’s Tenleytown neighborhood on Thursday afternoon has died, authorities say.
Brady Flowers Jr., of Southwest, was the victim, police said in an update Saturday.
Flowers was found shot in the 4500 block of Wisconsin Avenue NW, behind the CVS store. Jackson-Reed High School and American University are nearby.
Flowers was rushed to a hospital with life-threatening injuries and pronounced dead a day later, police said.
Police said 10-15 teens were seen running after the gunshots.
An investigation is underway. Anyone with potentially relevant information is asked to contact police.
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Washington
Governor Moore Continues “Delivering for Maryland” Tour in Washington County, Highlighting Transportation Infrastructure, Economic Development, and Early Childhood Education
Updated:
ANNAPOLIS, MD — Governor Wes Moore today continued his statewide “Delivering for Maryland” tour with a series of engagements in Washington County, highlighting vital investments in local transportation infrastructure, manufacturing job growth, and early childhood education. The governor emphasized state contributions to modernize the Hagerstown Regional Airport, toured the state-of-the-art Hitachi Rail facility, and celebrated the opening of a new child care center in the South End of Hagerstown funded by the administration’s historic ENOUGH Initiative.
“From investing $1.5 million to update Hagerstown Regional Airport’s aging control tower to supporting 1,300 jobs at Hitachi Rail, the Moore-Miller administration is delivering for Hagerstown, Washington County, and Western Maryland,” said Gov. Moore. “Through our administration’s ENOUGH Initiative partnerships and investments, we’ve tripled child care capacity in the South End of Hagerstown — because no parents should be forced to pick between staying in the workforce or securing quality care for their kids.”
The governor began the day at the Hagerstown Regional Airport, touring the Air Traffic Control Tower and airport grounds. During the visit, Governor Moore highlighted the State’s $1.5 million Fiscal Year 2027 investment to complete the design for a critical replacement of the airport’s aging air traffic control facility. As a primary airport in the Maryland Aviation System Plan, the Hagerstown Regional Airport is a vital economic engine for Washington County, supporting more than 1,800 jobs and generating over $140 million in local business revenue.
Following the airport tour, Governor Moore visited the Hitachi Rail STS facility alongside Congresswoman April McClain Delaney, Senator Mike McKay, Senator Paul Corderman and state transportation leaders. The governor toured the factory floor and rode a test train to observe the manufacturing process. Opened in September 2025 with the support of a $1.6 million state conditional loan, the 307,000-square-foot, carbon-neutral facility is a $100 million capital investment by Hitachi. The factory supports 1,300 jobs — including 460 newly created jobs — and is actively manufacturing railcars for both the Maryland Transit Administration and the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority.
“Hitachi Rail has built a cutting-edge model for advanced manufacturing here in Western Maryland which is focused on delivering clean, safe, efficient regional transportation across our state and the rest of the country,” said Congresswoman April McClain Delaney. “This facility is powered by Maryland’s second-to-none workforce and world-class innovation environment. I’m proud to work with Governor Moore and our public, private, and philanthropic partners to drive global investment that supports jobs and economic growth along our I-270 Tech Corridor.”
Governor Moore concluded the day at the Children’s Learning and Empowerment Center in the South End of Hagerstown, where he met with parents, children, and community leaders. During the visit, the Governor highlighted the administration’s ENOUGH Initiative, which provided critical support for the center’s opening. The new facility is a major win for the community, tripling local childcare capacity with 24 new slots and generating six new early childhood education jobs.
The Children’s Learning and Empowerment Center’s opening was accelerated by a $100,000 investment from San Mar Family & Community Services, the ENOUGH grantee in Hagerstown. ENOUGH grant funding was also supplemented by a $100,000 philanthropic contribution from the Bainum Family Foundation — a member of the ENOUGH Alliance — to complete necessary facility upgrades. The center’s completion underscores the strength of the ENOUGH Initiative’s public-private partnerships to deliver on community priorities and work towards ending child poverty.
Governor Moore’s visit to Washington County follows the third stop of his “Delivering for Maryland” tour in Montgomery County, where he marked a historic milestone by installing the final segment of rail for the Purple Line. This installation completes the 16.2-mile light rail corridor connecting Bethesda and New Carrollton, with passenger service expected to begin in late 2027. The governor also visited Max’s Best Ice Cream in Bethesda, a local business dedicated to creating meaningful employment opportunities for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities through the Best Buddies Jobs program.
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A man charged with attacking the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner is seeking to disqualify top justice department officials from direct involvement in prosecuting him because they could be considered victims or witnesses in the case, creating a potential conflict of interest.
The acting attorney general, Todd Blanche, and US attorney Jeanine Pirro were attending the 25 April event at the Washington Hilton hotel when Cole Tomas Allen allegedly ran through a security checkpoint and fired a shotgun at a Secret Service officer.
In a court filing late on Thursday, Allen’s attorneys argued that it created at least the appearance of a conflict of interest for Blanche and Pirro to be making any prosecutorial decisions in the case.
“As this case proceeds closer to trial, the country and the world will continue to wonder – how can the American justice system permit a victim to prosecute a criminal defendant in a case involving them?” defense attorneys Eugene Ohm and Tezira Abe wrote.
Ohm and Abe, who are assistant federal public defenders, suggested that the appointment of a special prosecutor might be warranted. They urged US district judge Trevor McFadden, a Trump nominee assigned to Allen’s case, to disqualify Pirro, Blanche and possibly other justice department officials from direct involvement in the investigation and prosecution.
“Both heard gunshots, which presumably forced them to duck below the tables with the rest of the occupants. They were quickly evacuated. Shortly thereafter, they learned that law enforcement believed the target was certain administration officials,” Ohm and Abe wrote.
Pirro said her office would respond to the defense lawyers’ arguments in its own court filing.
“We will not tolerate people who come to the District of Columbia to engage in antidemocratic acts of political violence; and we will prosecute all such acts to the fullest extent of the law,” Pirro said in a statement.
Allen is scheduled to be arraigned on Monday on further charges in an indictment handed up Tuesday by a grand jury in Washington.
The charges include attempting to assassinate Donald Trump, who is a longtime friend of Pirro. Blanche served as a personal attorney for Trump before joining the justice department last year. Blanche, through a spokesperson, referred a request for comment to Pirro’s office. Allen, 31, of Torrance, California, is also charged with assaulting a federal officer with a deadly weapon and two additional firearms counts.
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