Politics
Federal judge blocks White House freeze on 'financial assistance' amid anger, confusion
WASHINGTON — A federal judge Tuesday temporarily blocked a Trump administration directive that would have frozen an array of federal financial aid while the administration assessed whether it comported with the new president’s agenda, finding the directive had the potential to cause “irreparable harm” to Americans.
U.S. District Judge Loren AliKhan delayed the Office of Management and Budget memorandum from taking effect until at least 5 p.m. Monday, while a legal challenge to it by a coalition of nonprofit organizations plays out.
The ruling by AliKhan, an appointee of President Biden, followed a rush of confusion and anger among Democratic leaders, state officials and federal program managers over the directive’s vagueness, as well as efforts by the White House to walk back its scope after first issuing the memo late Monday.
Dr. Georges C. Benjamin, executive director of the American Public Health Assn. — part of the coalition that sued — said the directive had the potential to cause “a lot of dysfunction and the loss of services,” and welcomed the judge’s decision to halt it while the litigation proceeds.
“When you run a nonprofit or a small business, and basically your bank account has been, in effect, closed … you have no sense of whether you’re going to get reimbursed for that work — that’s a big problem,” he said.
The administration’s order was also facing a separate legal challenge from California and other states, where officials argued the directive was an unconstitutional power grab by President Trump that would harm vulnerable populations.
“We will not stand by while the president attempts to disrupt vital programs that feed our kids, provide medical care to our families and support housing in our communities,” California Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta said at a news conference. “We won’t stand by while the president breaks the law and oversteps his authority, as outlined in our Constitution.”
Bonta said the order threatens trillions of dollars in federal funding, and was “reckless, it is dangerous, unprecedented in scope and devastating in its intended effect.”
New York Atty. Gen. Letitia James, who is leading the effort with Bonta, called the memo “plainly unconstitutional.”
“The president does not get to decide which laws to enforce and for whom,” James said. “When Congress dedicates funding for a program, the president cannot pull that funding on a whim.”
Bonta and James spoke after a day of swirling speculation about the scope of the order — which the White House downplayed even as it worked to specify the order’s reach.
The White House issued an updated memo Tuesday that expanded a list of programs exempted from the funding pause, including Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and the food assistance program known as SNAP. Also exempted would be federal funding for small businesses, farmers, Pell Grant recipients, Head Start, rental assistance “and other similar programs,” the White House said.
Karoline Leavitt, Trump’s press secretary, said that the directive was “not a blanket pause on federal assistance and grant programs” and that anyone receiving “individual assistance from the federal government” would continue receiving that aid. She also noted that the cuts, which were meant to take effect Tuesday afternoon, were temporary, and that leaders of federal programs were free to call Trump budget officials to make the case that their programs should not be frozen.
She also suggested the administration was clear on the order’s scope, and confusion on that front was limited to the media.
Both James and Bonta said the White House’s attempts to minimize the scope of the order after confusing program managers and terrifying benefit recipients across the country did not resolve their concerns or negate the need for their lawsuit.
On the contrary, Bonta said that the initial order had “thrown state programs into chaos,” and the White House’s attempts to clarify it had “further fueled” the confusion.
James said some states were already reporting that funds had been frozen, including for programs that the White House said would not be affected. Many states had been shut out of their Medicaid reimbursement systems, she said. Other programs affected in different states included Head Start and child development block grants, she said.
California is expected to distribute $168.3 billion in federal funds and grants through the fiscal year that ends June 30. Officials are assessing what of that funding is at risk. Los Angeles officials were also scrambling to make sense of the order, which could affect housing vouchers and homeless assistance grants, according to internal emails.
Bonta said he is coordinating with other state officials, and believes that federal disaster relief funding for the recovery from L.A.’s devastating wildfires remains at risk under the order.
Gov. Gavin Newsom said he remained confident in the state’s partnership with the federal government to meet fire-related needs, but also said the directive on financial aid was “completely inconsistent with the law.”
“It’s unconstitutional and I think any objective observer sees that,” he said.
The uproar began late Monday, after Matthew J. Vaeth, acting director of the Office of Management and Budget, issued a memo announcing a “temporary pause” on grants, loans and other financial assistance.
Vaeth wrote that voters had given Trump a “mandate to increase the impact of every federal taxpayer dollar,” and Trump needed to determine which spending by the government aligned with his agenda.
“Financial assistance should be dedicated to advancing Administration priorities, focusing taxpayer dollars to advance a stronger and safer America, eliminating the financial burden of inflation for citizens, unleashing American energy and manufacturing, ending ‘wokeness’ and the weaponization of government, promoting efficiency in government, and Making America Healthy Again,” he wrote. “The use of Federal resources to advance Marxist equity, transgenderism, and green new deal social engineering policies is a waste of taxpayer dollars that does not improve the day-to-day lives of those we serve.”
Democrats immediately began sounding alarms and calling the directive unconstitutional and far beyond the scope of Trump’s power as president, given that Congress, not the White House, generally appropriates funding.
Senate Appropriations Vice Chair Patty Murray (D-Wash.) said the fact that “Congress holds the power of the purse” is “very clear in the Constitution.”
Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), the top Democrat on the Senate Budget Committee, called the White House move “a constitutional crisis.” His committee is scheduled to vote Thursday on Trump’s nomination of Russ Vought as White House budget chief. Vought is the architect of the spending freeze.
The original memorandum ordered all federal agencies to conduct a “comprehensive analysis” of their spending to determine which of it is “consistent with the President’s policies” and the raft of executive orders that Trump has issued.
In the interim, it said, federal agencies must — to “the extent permissible under applicable laws” — pause all disbursements of funds or “other relevant agency activities” that may be covered by Trump’s orders, “including, but not limited to, financial assistance for foreign aid, nongovernmental organizations, DEI, woke gender ideology, and the green new deal,” Vaeth wrote.
The pause, the memo said, will give the Trump administration time to “determine the best uses of the funding” moving forward.
Leading Republicans largely defended the move — suggesting it was a normal act for an incoming administration.
“I think that’s a normal practice at the beginning of administration, until they have an opportunity to review how the money is being spent,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune said Tuesday morning.
Democrats disagreed — issuing especially critical reactions prior to the White House’s clarifications.
Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) called the directive “outrageous” and “a dagger at the heart of the average American family in red states and blue states, in cities, in suburbs, in rural areas.”
Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) wrote that Trump’s “illegal scheme will raise costs, hurt working families and deny critical resources for Americans in need.” Rep. John Garamendi (D-Walnut Grove) said the order will cause Americans to suffer.
A coalition including the American Public Health Assn. and the National Council of Nonprofits is independently challenging the memo in court, as well.
The order followed a separate directive by the Trump administration to halt a range of foreign aid.
Mark Peterson, a UCLA professor who studies public policy and political science, said the original memo was without precedent and left “extreme ambiguity as to what it affects and how it applies,” as well as its duration.
“Anything that has, from the point of view of the Trump administration, the aroma of dealing with equity or inclusion issues could be put under threat,” Peterson said — and “there’s so much misunderstanding about what those issues are.”
Times staff writers Pinho reported from Washington, Rector from San Francisco and Alpert Reyes from Los Angeles. Times staff writer Taryn Luna in Sacramento contributed to this report.
Politics
Marjorie Taylor Greene criticizes Trump’s meetings with Zelenskyy, Netanyahu: ‘Can we just do America?’
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Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., on Sunday called for President Trump to only focus on America’s needs as the president meets with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The president has been heavily involved in the Russia-Ukraine and Israel-Hamas conflicts since returning to the White House.
Trump met with Zelenskyy on Sunday at Mar-a-Lago to discuss a peace plan aimed at ending the Russia-Ukraine war that began with an invasion by Moscow in February 2022.
Netanyahu arrived in Florida on Sunday ahead of their scheduled meeting on Monday at Trump’s estate to address Israel’s conflicts in the Middle East. It will be the sixth meeting of the year between the two leaders.
TRUMP ZELENSKYY SAY UKRAINE PEACE DEAL CLOSE BUT ‘THORNY ISSUES’ REMAIN AFTER FLORIDA TALKS
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene criticized President Donald Trump’s meetings with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
Greene, responding to Trump’s meeting with Zelenskyy and Netanyahu, said that the Trump administration should address the needs of Americans rather than becoming further involved in global conflicts.
“Zelensky today. Netanyahu tomorrow,” she wrote on X.
President Donald Trump welcomes Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at his Mar-a-Lago residence in Palm Beach, Florida. (Jim WATSON / AFP via Getty Images)
“Can we just do America?” the congresswoman continued.
The congresswoman has been a vocal critic of supplying U.S. military aid to foreign countries amid the conflicts in Europe and the Middle East.
She has also referred to Zelenskyy as “a dictator who canceled elections” and labeled Israel’s military campaign in Gaza as a genocide and humanitarian crisis.
ZELENSKYY READY TO PRESENT NEW PEACE PROPOSALS TO US AND RUSSIA AFTER WORKING WITH EUROPEAN TALKS
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene and President Donald Trump had a public feud in recent months. (Getty Images)
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This comes after Taylor Greene, who is set to resign from the House in January, had a public spat with Trump over the past few months as Trump took issue with the Georgia Republican’s push to release documents related to the investigations into deceased sex predator Jeffrey Epstein.
Trump had withdrawn his endorsement of Greene and called her a “traitor” over the public feud.
Politics
Commentary: America tried something new in 2025. It’s not going well
Is there a dumpster somewhere to torch and bury this year of bedlam, 2025?
We near its end with equal amounts relief and trepidation. Surely we can’t be expected to endure another such tumultuous turn around the sun?
It was only January that Donald Trump moved back into the White House, apparently toting trunkloads of gilt for the walls. Within weeks, he’d declared an emergency at the border; set in motion plans to dismantle government agencies; fired masses of federal workers; and tariffs, tariffs, tariffs.
Demonstrators at a No Kings rally in Washington, protesting actions by President Trump and Elon Musk.
(Jose Luis Magana / Associated Press)
By spring, the administration was attacking Harvard as a test case for strong-arming higher education. By June, Trump’s grotesquely misnamed Big Beautiful Bill had become law, giving $1 trillion in tax cuts to billionaires and funding a deportation effort (and armed force) that has fundamentally reshaped American immigration law and ended any pretense about targeting “the worst of the worst.”
Fall and winter have brought questionable bombings of boats in the Caribbean, a further backing away from Ukraine, a crackdown on opposition to Trump by classifying it as leftist terrorism and congressional inaction on healthcare that will leave many struggling to stay insured.
That’s the short list.
It was a year when America tried something new, and while adherents of the MAGA movement may celebrate much of it, our columnists Anita Chabria and Mark Z. Barabak have a different perspective.
Here, they renew their annual tradition of looking at the year past and offering some thoughts on what the new year may bring.
Chabria: Welp, that was something. I can’t say 2025 was a stellar year for the American experiment, but it certainly will make the history books.
Before we dive into pure politics, I’ll start with something positive. I met a married couple at a No Kings rally in Sacramento who were dressed up as dinosaurs, inspired by the Portland Frog, an activist who wears an inflatable amphibian suit.
When I asked why, the husband told me, “If you don’t do something soon, you will have democracy be extinct.”
Crowds participate in No Kings Day in downtown Los Angeles in October.
(Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)
I loved that so many Americans were doing something by turning out to not just protest policies that hit personally, but to rally in support of democracy writ large. For many, it was their first time taking this kind of action, and they were doing it in a way that expressed optimism and possibility rather than giving in to anger or despair. Where there is humor, there is hope.
Barabak: As in, it only hurts when I laugh?
In 2024, a plurality of Americans voted to reinstall Trump in the White House — warts, felony conviction and all — mainly in the hope he would bring down the cost of living and make eggs and gasoline affordable again.
While eggs and gas are no longer exorbitant, the cost of just about everything else continues to climb. Or, in the case of beef, utility bills and insurance, skyrocket.
The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts is another of the long-standing institutions Trump has smeared his name across.
(Jacquelyn Martin / Associated Press)
Meantime, the president seems less concerned with improving voters’ lives than smearing his name on every object he lays his eyes on, one of the latest examples being the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.
(The only place Trump doesn’t want to see his name is in those voluminous Epstein files.)
I wonder: Why stop there? Why not brand these the United States of Trump-erica, then boast we live in the “hottest” country on Planet Trump?
Chabria: Stop giving him ideas!
You and I agree that it’s been a difficult year full of absurdity, but we’ve disagreed on how seriously to take Trump as a threat to democracy. As the year closes, I am more concerned than ever.
It’s not the ugly antics of ego that alarm me, but the devastating policies that will be hard to undo — if we get the chance to undo them.
The race-based witch hunt of deportations is obviously at the top of that list, but the demolition of both K-12 and higher education; the dismantling of federal agencies, thereby cutting our scientific power as a nation; the increasing oligarchy of tech industrialists; the quiet placement of election deniers in key election posts — these are all hammers bashing away at our democracy.
Now, we are seeing overt antisemitism and racism on the MAGA right, with alarming acceptance from many. The far right has championed a debate as dumb as it is frightening, about “heritage” Americans being somehow a higher class of citizens than nonwhites.
Vice President JD Vance speaks at the University of Mississippi in Oxford.
(Gerald Herbert / Associated Press)
Recently, Vice President JD Vance gave a speech in which he announced, “In the United States of America, you don’t have to apologize for being white anymore,” and Trump has said he wants to start taking away citizenship from legal immigrants. Both men claim America is a Christian nation, and eschew diversity as a value.
Do you still think American democracy is secure, and this political moment will pass without lasting damage to our democratic norms?
Barabak: I’ll start with some differentiation.
I agree that Trump is sowing seeds or, more specifically, enacting policies and programs, that will germinate and do damage for many years to come.
Alienating our allies, terrorizing communities with his prejudicial anti-immigrant policies — which go far beyond a reasonable tightening of border security — starving science and other research programs. The list is a long and depressing one, as you suggest.
But I do believe — cue the trumpets and cherubs — there is nothing beyond the power of voters to fix.
To quote, well, me, there is no organism on the planet more sensitive to heat and light than a politician. We’ve already seen an anti-Trump backlash in a series of elections held this year, in red and blue state alike. A strong repudiation in the 2026 midterm election will do more than all the editorial tut-tutting and protest marches combined. (Not that either are bad things.)
A stressed-out seeming poll worker in a polling station at Los Angeles’ Union Station.
(Eric Thayer / Los Angeles Times)
The best way to preserve our democracy and uphold America’s values is for unhappy citizens to register their dissent via the ballot box. And to address at least one of your concerns, I’m not too worried about Trump somehow nullifying the results, given legal checks and the decentralization of our election system.
Installing lawmakers in Congress with a mandate to hold Trump to account would be a good start toward repairing at least some of the damage he’s wrought. And if it turns into a Republican rout, it’ll be quite something to watch the president’s onetime allies run for the hills as fast as their weak knees allow.
Chabria: OMG! It’s a holiday miracle. We agree!
I think the midterms will be messy, but I don’t think this will be an election where Trump, or anyone, outright tries to undo overall results.
Although I do think the groundwork will be laid to sow further doubt in our election integrity ahead of 2028, and we will see bogus claims of fraud and lawsuits.
So the midterms very well could be a reset if Democrats take control of something, anything. We would likely not see past damage repaired, but may see enough opposition to slow the pace of whatever is happening now, and offer transparency and oversight.
But the 2026 election only matters if people vote, which historically is not something a great number of people do in midterms. At this point, there are few people out there who haven’t heard about the stakes in November, but that still doesn’t translate to folks — lazy, busy, distracted — weighing in.
If proposed restrictions on mail-in ballots or voter identification take effect, even just in some states, that will also change the outcomes.
But there is hope, always hope.
Barabak: On that note, let’s recognize a few of the many good things that happened in 2025.
MacKenzie Scott donated $700 million to more than a dozen historically Black colleges and universities, showing that not all tech billionaires are selfish and venal.
The Dodgers won their second championship and, while this San Francisco Giants fan was not pleased, their seven-game thriller against the Toronto Blue Jays was a World Series for the ages.
And the strength and resilience shown by survivors of January’s SoCal firestorm has been something to behold.
Any others, beside your demonstrating dinos, who deserve commendation?
Pope Leo XIV waves after delivering the Christmas Day blessing from the main balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican.
(Gregorio Borgia / Associated Press)
Chabria: Though I’m not Catholic, I have been surprisingly inspired by Pope Leo XIV.
So I’ll leave us with a bit of his advice for the future: “Be agents of communion, capable of breaking down the logic of division and polarization, of individualism and egocentrism.”
Many of us are tired, and suffering from Trump fatigue. Regardless, to put it in nonpapal terms, it may be a dumpster — but we’re all in it together.
Barabak: I’d like to end, as we do each year, with a thank you to our readers.
Anita and I wouldn’t be here — which would greatly please some folks — but for you. (And a special nod to the paid subscribers out there. You help keep the lights on.)
Here’s wishing each and all a happy, healthy and prosperous new year.
We’ll see you again in 2026.
Politics
The biggest losers of 2025: Who fell flat as the year closed
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2025 didn’t just expose Democratic divisions — it created a short list of political losers whose missteps are already shaping the battlefield for 2026. From establishment leaders squeezed by a restless progressive base to national figures who burned precious time, this past year has left behind a series of cautionary tales for a party out of power.
MODERATE DEMOCRATS PUSH BACK AS PROGRESSIVES MOVE TO OUST JEFFRIES, CLARK OVER TRUMP STRATEGY
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., right, and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., walk speak to members of the media outside the West Wing at the White House in Washington, Monday, Sept. 29, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
Establishment and old-school Democrats
The loudest, most visible Democratic figures haven’t just voiced opposition to the Trump administration — they’ve also made it clear they expect a new version of the party to emerge going forward. From Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani in New York City promising expansive government program increases to Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s hint that she could beat Vice President J.D. Vance in a bid for the presidency, progressives can easily say they had some of the most visible momentum in 2025.
And that’s bad news for old-school Democrats.
As recently as last month, both House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., and House Whip Katherine Clark, D-Mass., faced primary challenges from their progressive base. These challengers cited dissatisfaction with their resistance against the administration. It’s unclear if those calls are disproportionately loud in a moment where Democrats find themselves out of power. But many moderate Democrats told Fox News Digital they don’t think it’s helping win over the electorate’s political middle.
Should progressives continue to crowd out the picture in 2026, more establishment Democrats may find it increasingly difficult to ignore pressure from their far-left flank as the nation heads into the midterms.
GOP SEIZES ON DEM CIVIL WAR AS PROGRESSIVES JUMP INTO KEY 2026 SENATE RACES: ‘THEY’RE IN SHAMBLES’
California Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks during a campaign event in support of Proposition 50 in San Francisco, Monday, Nov. 3, 2025. (Gabrielle Lurie/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)
Gavin Newsom
California Gov. Gavin Newsom is running out of time to prove why he could be something more than a party messaging figure. In the past year, he’s pigeonholed himself into exactly that role.
In 2025, Newsom cemented himself as one of the key Democratic foils to Trump’s agenda. And on that front, there’s little question he capitalized on the attention.
Most notably, Newsom pushed through a redistricting effort meant to squeeze five Republicans out of office after Texas advanced a similar plan earlier this year. While the plan received mixed reviews — even from Democrats in the state who were wary of fighting fire with fire — it has certainly advanced Newsom’s national status.
But like every would-be Trump foil, Newsom finds himself somewhat reliant on Trump for his next move. Should Newsom begin to position himself for a 2028 bid for the White House, he won’t have that luxury around forever, and he only has one more year as California’s governor.
Newsom burned precious time in 2025 to show voters in California and across the country what kind of executive he could be.
DEMOCRATIC HEAVYWEIGHTS HARRIS, NEWSOM TURN HEADS, FUEL 2028 SPECULATION
Former President Joe Biden talks to reporters on the South Lawn of the White House, Monday, Sept. 2, 2024, in Washington, D.C. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
Joe Biden
On several key issues, former President Joe Biden’s legacy has already grown old in 2025.
It took just weeks for the Trump administration to dismantle the claim that Biden was doing everything he could to stop illegal border crossings from pouring into the United States. With a few key executive orders, Trump brought the country to one of its lowest levels of border encounters ever.
And while that’s the most notable entry, the list of double-takes doesn’t end there.
An autopen investigation in the House of Representatives revealed Biden had delegated an unprecedented amount of authority to his aides. Moreover, a book put out by Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson took a deep look at just how hard his inner circle had worked to maintain the president’s image amid concerns about his age and cognitive ability.
Taken together, Biden’s administration just one year removed has plunged Democrats into questions of where to go next and provided Republicans with a wealth of evidence to make the case Democrats weren’t as transparent about the country’s problems as they could have been.
‘ROCK STAR’ NEWSOM STEALS THE SHOW AT DNC SUMMIT AS DEMOCRATS HUNT FOR 2028 CONTENDER TO TAKE ON TRUMP
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer gives a thumbs up as he walks out of the Senate Chamber after speaking on the floor of the Senate on Dec. 20, 2024. (Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)
Chuck Schumer
Few political figures have had as politically damaging a year in 2025 as the Senate minority leader, Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.
He received most of the blame for a disastrous 43-day government shutdown that largely left Democrats empty-handed. While Schumer himself didn’t vote with the eight Democrats who eventually supported a Republican plan to end the shutdown, he received calls to step aside in the aftermath for failing to keep Senate Democrats on the same page.
According to many Republicans, the political calculus for Schumer during the shutdown was more about putting up a good enough fight to appease the progressive side of the Democratic base.
But Schumer also failed to do that too.
During the shutdown, the New York City mayoral race had come to its final stretch with little word from the Senate Minority Leader. When it became clear the self-proclaimed socialist Zohran Mamdani would capture the party’s nomination, Schumer tried to dodge questions about whether he would support his bid. That reluctance never went away and questions about the relationship between the two Democrats only intensified.
Just days removed from the election, Schumer continued to give non-answers about Mamdani.
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Now at the close of 2025, Schumer has left questions unanswered about whether he can still effectively lead the party and whether he represents the party’s future.
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