A federal judge claims President Donald J. Trump is violating a court-issued order directing the executive branch to unfreeze all federal grant programs the America First leader ordered suspended late last month. The ruling, issued by U.S. District Judge John McConnell, directs the Trump White House to “immediately restore frozen funding” while his initial order blocking the suspension of federal grant disbursement remains in effect.
Notably, the judge’s ruling means grant funding through the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and former President Joe Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act and Infrastructure Improvement and Jobs Act is once again available—though for how long is unclear. “[It is a] basic proposition that all orders and judgments of courts must be complied with promptly,” Judge McConnell writes in his ruling, continuing: “Persons who make private determinations of the law and refuse to obey an order generally risk criminal contempt even if the order is ultimately ruled incorrect.”
“The Defendants issued a broad, categorical, all-encompassing directive freezing federal funding. The plain language of the TRO entered in this case prohibits all categorical pauses or freezes in obligations or disbursements based on the OMB Directive or based on the President’s 2025 Executive Orders,” the U.S. District Judge argues, adding: “The Defendants received notice of the TRO, the Order is clear and unambiguous, and there are no impediments to the Defendants’ compliance with the Order.”
In January, after taking the Oath of Office, President Trump moved to suspend nearly all federal grant issuance, arguing taxpayer dollars should not fund programs working against the interests of the American people. The suspension is part of a larger Trump White House effort to eliminate large-scale waste, fraud, and abuse in the federal government, seeking to cut $2 trillion from the over $7 trillion federal budget.
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