The issue of foreign aid is once again at the forefront of political discourse as the Trump administration looks to adjust how American taxpayer dollars are distributed.
In this case, the Trump administration has requested that the Supreme Court allow the withholding of billions of dollars of congressionally approved foreign aid, as USA Today reported.
That aid would have been distributed before the end of the fiscal year on Sept. 30, if the previous funding plan had moved forward.
However, the Department of Justice filed an appeal with the court this week, asking for the justices to pause a lower court’s order that would require the administration to distribute the money.
Solicitor General John Sauer said in the filing that the groups representing the aid contractors don’t have a legal basis to push the spending forward.
This is due to the fact that it’s up to Congress to challenge the administration if spending isn’t done appropriately by the executive branch, under a 1974 law called the Impoundment Control Act.
“Congress did not upset the delicate interbranch balance by allowing for unlimited, unconstrained private suits,” Sauer said.
“Any lingering dispute about the proper disposition of funds that the President seeks to rescind shortly before they expire should be left to the political branches, not effectively prejudged by the district court.”
Before the Supreme Court was involved in the case, U.S. District Judge Amir Ali ruled in favor of the groups that rely on the aid. The Biden appointee said it was an obligation of the executive branch to distribute the funds by the end of next month.
The AIDS Vaccine Advocacy Coalition is one of the groups in question, and one of their officials is who is challenging the holdbacks. That official was allegedly not surprised by the ruling.
“Time and again, this administration has shown their disdain for foreign assistance and a disregard for people’s lives in the United States and around the world. But even more broadly and dangerously, this administration’s actions further erodes Congress’s role and responsibility as an equal branch of government,” said coalition’s executive director, Mitchell Warren.
“The question being put to SCOTUS is whether they will be complicit in further eroding the constitutional commitment to checks and balance.”
Trump’s DOJ races to the Supreme Court to stop lower court judges from forcing billions in foreign aid payouts before the deadline. pic.twitter.com/oQDG2R290j
— Robert Gouveia Esq. (@RobGouveiaEsq) August 28, 2025
Sauer thinks that the question should be left to Congress, and those who believed they would receive the money, believe the battle was already won, and it should go to them. The Supreme Court has yet to rule.
