{"id":2488478,"date":"2025-09-19T07:24:58","date_gmt":"2025-09-19T11:24:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-attempts-pocket-rescission-to-cut-4-9-billion-in-foreign-aid\/"},"modified":"2025-09-19T07:27:39","modified_gmt":"2025-09-19T11:27:39","slug":"trump-attempts-pocket-rescission-to-cut-4-9-billion-in-foreign-aid","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-attempts-pocket-rescission-to-cut-4-9-billion-in-foreign-aid\/","title":{"rendered":"Trump attempts pocket rescission to cut $4.9 billion in foreign aid"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">22<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Ftrump-attempts-pocket-rescission-to-cut-4-9-billion-in-foreign-aid%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2488478&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The article reports that President Donald Trump has sought to cancel $4.9 billion in foreign aid spending through a &#8220;pocket rescission,&#8221; a move that aims to cut funds allocated by Congress to international growth programs, United nations contributions, and peacekeeping efforts. This attempt marks a continuation of the ongoing conflict between the White House&#8217;s Office of Management and Budget and congressional appropriations committees over control of federal spending.<\/p>\n<p>Trump&#8217;s administration invoked its authority under the 1974 Congressional Budget and impoundment Control act (ICA) but timed the rescission submission near the end of the fiscal year to bypass the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/squad-democrats-attack-biden-over-decision-to-bypass-congress-to-sell-weapons-to-israel\/\" title=\"Democrat Squad&#039; criticizes Biden for bypassing ... to sell arms to Israel\">usual congressional approval process<\/a>.This controversial tactic shifts the decision-making power from Congress to the executive branch, raising legal and constitutional concerns. Critics argue that the president cannot unilaterally withhold funds without congressional consent, while supporters claim the process is permitted under the ICA.<\/p>\n<p>The rescission proposal follows earlier spending cuts on foreign affairs and efforts to close USAID facilities without congress&#8217;s approval. These moves have heightened tensions in Congress,complicating negotiations over the 2026 federal budget and increasing the risk of a government shutdown. The article highlights the broader debate about fiscal responsibility, executive authority, and the separation of powers in U.S.budgetary processes. <br \/> <!DOCTYPE html><br \/>\n<?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><html><body><\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">Trump attempts pocket rescission to cut $4.9 billion in foreign aid<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_2216020\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>President<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/donald-trump\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"> Donald Trump<\/a> recently moved to cancel $4.9 billion in spending on foreign aid, the latest skirmish in the battle for control of the federal budget between the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/white-house\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">White House<\/a>&lsquo;s Office of Management and Budget and Congress&rsquo;s appropriations committees.<\/p>\n<p>Trump&rsquo;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.whitehouse.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Proposed-Rescissions-of-Budgetary-Resources-August-28-2025.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Aug. 28 rescission message<\/a> to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/congress\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Congress<\/a> in effect declared that the administration will not spend funding provided in the Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Appropriations Act of 2025. The proposal would nix $3.2 billion in international development program spending, $900 million in contributions to the United Nations, $326 million in international peacekeeping funds, and hundreds of millions of grants to foreign nations.<\/p>\n<div class=\"recommended-stories\">\n<h2>Recommended Stories<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/house\/3815103\/trump-ilhan-omar-impeached-married-brother\/\">Trump says &#8216;scum&#8217; Omar should be impeached, claims she married her brother<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/house\/3814630\/top-four-takeaways-from-house-oversight-hearing-on-dc-crime\/\">Top four takeaways from House Oversight hearing on DC crime<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/house\/3814166\/delia-ramirez-house-vote-subpoena-kristi-noem\/\">Democrats delay House hearing by forcing vote to subpoena Noem<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>&ldquo;The Trump Administration is committed to getting America&rsquo;s fiscal house in order by cutting government spending that is woke, weaponized, and wasteful,&rdquo; noted a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.whitehouse.gov\/briefings-statements\/2025\/08\/historic-pocket-rescission-package-eliminates-woke-weaponized-and-wasteful-spending\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">statement<\/a> released by the White House. &ldquo;Now, for the first time in 50 years, the President is using his authority under the Impoundment Control Act to deploy a pocket rescission, cancelling $5 billion in foreign aid and international organization funding that violates the President&rsquo;s America First priorities.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignleft size-large is-resized\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY), center, questions Office of Management and Budget director Russell Vought during a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing on the rescissions package on Capitol Hill in Washington on June 25. (Photos by Mariam Zuhaib\/AP)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>Congress first approved the spending last autumn in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.congress.gov\/crs-product\/R48231\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">legislation<\/a> signed by former President Joe Biden, which expired in March 2025. Congress and Trump agreed to extend the funding that same month.<\/p>\n<p>Yet, the Trump administration was clearly spoiling for a fight over who controls the federal purse. A few weeks earlier, it began the process of shuttering USAID without congressional authorization. Trump and GOP legislators partnered to enact a rescissions law that cut $9.4 billion in foreign affairs spending in July, as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/premium\/3477110\/congress-spending-cuts-house-senate-rescissions-legislation\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">reported<\/a> by the <em>Washington Examiner<\/em>&lsquo;s magazine, which drew ire from Republican and Democratic appropriators in Congress.<\/p>\n<p>Citizens Against Government Waste, which advocates lower federal spending, hailed the effort.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;[A]any step to cut wasteful spending when the country has a $37.3 trillion debt should be welcomed by legislators and taxpayers,&rdquo; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cagw.org\/president-trump-cuts-spending-with-a-pocket-rescission\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">wrote<\/a> Grigory Menshikov, the group&rsquo;s federal government affairs associate. CAGW was one of<a href=\"https:\/\/www.ccagw.org\/legislative-affairs\/letters-officials\/ccagw-joins-coalition-supporting-president-trumps-effort-cut\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"> dozens of groups and activists<\/a> that called for the Trump administration to use a pocket rescission.<\/p>\n<p>Yet, not everyone believes the administration&rsquo;s action was legal. The 1974 Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act <a href=\"https:\/\/uscode.house.gov\/view.xhtml?req=%28title:2%20section:683%20edition:prelim%29%20OR%20%28granuleid:USC-prelim-title2-section683%29&amp;f=treesort&amp;edition=prelim&amp;num=0&amp;jumpTo=true\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">allows<\/a> a president to ask Congress not to spend appropriated funds. The president must send a message to the Senate and House specifying the funds they want rescinded. Congress then has 45 days to pass a bill to approve the president&rsquo;s request. The rescission fails if both chambers do not pass the rescission bill within that time frame.<\/p>\n<p>The Trump administration gamed this process by submitting a rescission request less than 45 days before the end of the fiscal year (Sept. 30), at which point the legal authorization of the appropriation will expire. The pocket rescission, therefore, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lawfaremedia.org\/article\/legal-controversy-and-political-meaning\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">flips<\/a> the default control over cancellation of spending from the legislature to the executive.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Unilateral presidential failure to obligate funds proposed for rescission as required by the ICA, whether such illegal action is given the label of a &lsquo;pocket rescission&rsquo; or otherwise, is thus inconsistent with the text of the ICA,&rdquo; wrote five scholars of the appropriations process in a letter to Congress. &ldquo;The text of the ICA requires funds proposed for rescission to be made available for obligation unless Congress approves the rescission through legislation.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignright size-large is-resized\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Women wait inside a district hospital on Aug. 26 in Ghazni, Afghanistan. The hospital has struggled to cope with an increase in patients following US funding cuts which led to the closure of other health facilities in the area.  (Elise Blanchard\/Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>The Trump administration <a href=\"https:\/\/www.whitehouse.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Proposed-Rescissions-of-Budgetary-Resources-August-28-2025.pdf\">argued<\/a> that it has used its authority under the ICA to request cuts and that it can withhold spending while congressional action is pending. Supporters of the pocket rescission have further <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/jiwallner\/status\/1966323754016878704\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">pointed out<\/a> that the law does not forbid the president from sending a rescission message near the very end of the fiscal year.<\/p>\n<p>The U.S. Government Accountability Office <a href=\"https:\/\/www.gao.gov\/assets\/b-330330.pdf\">disagreed<\/a>, saying, &ldquo;The President cannot rely on the authority in the ICA to withhold amounts from obligation, while simultaneously disregarding the ICA&rsquo;s limitations.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The pocket veto also raises problems relating to the separation of powers. The Constitution <a href=\"https:\/\/constitution.congress.gov\/constitution\/article-1\/#article-1-section-8\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">empowers<\/a> Congress to appropriate funds from the U.S. Treasury for spending. A president <a href=\"https:\/\/constitution.congress.gov\/constitution\/article-1\/#article-1-section-7\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">may veto<\/a> any bill, but once it becomes law, they must &ldquo;take care that the laws be faithfully executed.&rdquo; The Supreme Court deemed unconstitutional the line-item veto in 1998, by which former President Bill Clinton unilaterally refused to spend money appropriated for particular purposes.<\/p>\n<p>Whatever its constitutional or legal status, the Trump administration&rsquo;s action has further complicated Congress&rsquo;s bargaining over fiscal 2026 spending bills. Congress has yet to send any of the 12 annual spending bills to the president, which must be done before Oct. 1 to avoid a partial or full government shutdown. Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA), who sits on the Appropriations Committee, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.politico.com\/news\/2025\/09\/08\/congress-factions-government-shutdown-trump-00548818?nname=inside-congress&amp;nid=0000014f-1646-d88f-a1cf-5f46b4be0000&amp;nrid=c683bbd4-db15-4880-9be0-5e12d8f850c0\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">said<\/a> the odds of a government shutdown are &ldquo;50-50, perhaps higher.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/3444699\/timeline-increasing-incidents-political-violence-in-the-us\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">POLITICAL VIOLENCE ON THE RISE IN THE US: A TIMELINE OF KEY INCIDENTS<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>It takes 60 votes to pass an appropriations act in the Senate, and Republicans only occupy 53 seats. Democrats may be in no mood to help Republicans. Earlier this year, Democrats fought bitterly among themselves over whether to support Republicans&rsquo; legislation to keep the government open as the Department of Government Efficiency dismantled USAID and Trump fired various officials installed by Biden.<\/p>\n<p>This summer&rsquo;s rescission law and the <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >attempted pocket veto rubbed salt<\/a> in their wounds. The price for Democrats to vote for any spending bills or a continuing resolution might be iron-clad provisions forbidding the rescission of the $4.9 billion in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-seeks-supreme-court-stay-on-foreign-aid-payment-deadline-washington-examiner\/\" title=\"Trump seeks Supreme Court stay on ... payment deadline - Washington Examiner\">foreign aid funds<\/a> and GOP agreement not to pursue additional rescissions.<\/p>\n<p><em>Kevin R. Kosar (<\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/kevinrkosar\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><em>@kevinrkosar<\/em><\/a><em>) is a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and edits<\/em> <a href=\"http:\/\/understandingcongress.org\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><em>UnderstandingCongress.org<\/em><\/a><em>.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p> <script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script> <\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Trump seeks to cut $4.9B foreign aid via pocket rescission<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3532,"featured_media":2488479,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/WB.Congress2.092425.jpg?w=696","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[38037,49208,63664,3634,32515],"class_list":["post-2488478","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-budget-cuts","tag-foreign-aid","tag-pocket-rescission","tag-trump","tag-us-politics"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/WB.Congress2.092425.jpg?w=696","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2488478","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3532"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2488478"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2488478\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2488482,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2488478\/revisions\/2488482"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2488479"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2488478"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2488478"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2488478"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}