The White House has ordered a pause in federal grants and loans starting Tuesday afternoon, as the administration of President Donald Trump reviews whether potentially trillions of dollars in spending aligns with his political agenda.
Matthew Vaeth, Trump’s acting director of the White House Office of Management and Budget, issued a two-page order late Monday saying that Washington will “temporarily pause all activities related to obligations or disbursement of all Federal financial assistance.”
Vaeth 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.”
The pause excludes key government programs that provide monthly government pensions and health care insurance for older Americans, as well as food aid for impoverished citizens.
It was not immediately clear how much aid could be affected by the order, although the White House said the figure was $3 trillion in the fiscal year that ended last September.
Democrats accused the president of exceeding his constitutional authority by withholding money that Congress already approved to spend.
“The