White Home press secretary Karoline Leavitt, throughout her first press briefing on Tuesday, confronted a barrage of questions on the administration’s freeze on federal monetary help packages that congressional Democrats referred to as flatly unlawful.
Businesses confronted a 5 p.m. ET deadline to adjust to a memo from the White Home Workplace of Administration and Funds to stop spending on any grant or mortgage packages if they believe it’d battle with President Donald Trump’s current government orders on DEI, overseas help, local weather spending and extra.
A federal choose on Tuesday, inside minutes of that deadline, issued a quick administration keep of the coverage throughout a digital listening to. The keep blocks the coverage from taking impact till 5 p.m. ET on Feb. 3.
The memo prompted widespread confusion amongst advocacy organizations and state officers, a few of whom reported error messages when attempting to entry portals to attract down funds for Medicaid, group well being facilities and extra.
A authorized problem was filed by nonprofits and well being teams who argue the Workplace of Administration and Funds is exceeding its authority. Democrats, too, are slamming the transfer as unlawful and be aware the funds have been appropriated by Congress.
“There isn’t any uncertainty on this constructing,” Leavitt mentioned when requested to make clear about precisely what packages will probably be impacted.
White Home Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt delivers remarks throughout her first day by day briefing on the White Home, in Washington, Jan. 28, 2025.
Carlos Barria/Reuters
“Social Safety advantages, Medicare advantages, meals stamps, welfare advantages, help that’s going on to people is not going to be impacted by this pause,” she mentioned.
Leavitt later added, “Nonetheless, it’s the accountability of this president and this administration to be good stewards of taxpayer {dollars}. That’s one thing that President Trump campaigned on.”
Leavitt mentioned the freeze was short-term, however didn’t broaden on a selected timeline on when it will finish.
President Donald Trump seems to be on after delivering remarks on the Home Republican Members Convention Dinner at Trump Nationwide Doral Miami, in Miami, Florida, Jan. 27, 2025.
Mandel Ngan/AFP by way of Getty Photos
When requested if Medicaid was impacted by the pause, Leavitt could not instantly say from the rostrum and she or he would “test again.” She additionally didn’t straight reply to a query on the influence on organizations like Meals on Wheels, which supplies meals to 2.2 million seniors, or Head Begin, a program for preschool training, that obtain federal funding.
Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden posted on social media about studies about Medicaid portals being down in states as he criticized the freeze.
Leavitt, after the briefing, wrote on X: “The White Home is conscious of the Medicaid web site portal outage. We have now confirmed no funds have been affected — they’re nonetheless being processed and despatched. We anticipate the portal will probably be again on-line shortly.”
An OMB memo obtained by ABC Information Senior Political Correspondent Rachel Scott additionally sought to make clear the freeze’s implications.
Based on the memo, “along with Social Safety and Medicare, already explicitly excluded within the steerage, necessary packages like Medicaid and SNAP will proceed with out pause.”
“Funds for small companies, farmers, Pell grants, Head Begin, rental help, and different comparable packages is not going to be paused,” the doc learn. “If companies are involved that these packages might implicate the President’s Govt Orders, they need to seek the advice of OMB to start to unwind these objectionable insurance policies with out a pause within the funds.”
Nonetheless, the pause might have sweeping implication because the federal authorities funds hundreds of packages, together with housing subsidies and academic grants.
The Environmental Safety Company, which supplies grants for an array of nationwide, state and tribal packages — together with some to help with air and water high quality — mentioned on Tuesday it was briefly pausing disbursement.
Whereas Democrats are vowing to push again on the directive, Republicans are coming to the administration’s protection.
“I believe they’re clarifying it, and I believe this isn’t uncommon for an administration to pause funding and to take a tough look and scrub of how these packages, how they’re being spent, and the way they work together with loads of the chief orders that the President signed,” Senate Majority Chief John Thune mentioned as he addressed considerations throughout his weekly press convention.
“It is a work in progress. All people. Take a deep breath. Keep calm. Each certainly one of these packages goes to be checked out,” GOP Sen. James Risch mentioned, arguing that Trump is taking this motion as a solution to sort out inflation and outsized authorities spending.
ABC Information’ Mariam Khan contributed to this report.
