Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - January 29, 2025, Winnipeg, Manitoba Read the Winter issue at: winnipegfreepress.com/fp-features Available in your Free Press (subscribers) on March 29 and at Manitoba Liquor Marts - while supplies last! SPRING 2025 ISSUE OF DON’T MISS THE COMING SOON! WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 29, 2025 A8 ● WINNIPEGFREEPRESS.COM NEWS I WORLD Judge temporarily blocks Trump administration funding freeze W ASHINGTON — A federal judge on Tuesday temporarily blocked a push from U.S. Presi- dent Donald Trump to pause federal funding while his administration con- ducts an across-the-board ideological review to uproot progressive initiatives. The order capped the most chaot- ic day for the U.S. government since Trump returned to office, with uncer- tainty over a crucial financial lifeline causing panic and confusion among states, schools and organizations that rely on trillions of dollars from Wash- ington. U.S. District Judge Loren L. AliKhan blocked the funding freeze only min- utes before it was scheduled to take ef- fect. The administrative stay, prompt- ed by a lawsuit brought by non-profit groups that receive federal money, lasts until Monday afternoon. Another court hearing is scheduled that mor- ning to consider the issue. The White House did not immediately comment on the order, which leaves unresolved a potential constitutional clash over control of taxpayer money. Democrats who have struggled to gain a foothold during Trump’s second term unleashed on the Republican president, describing his actions as capricious and illegal. Administration officials said the decision to halt loans and grants was necessary to ensure that spending complies with Trump’s recent blitz of executive orders. The Republican president wants to increase fossil fuel production, remove protections for transgender people and end diversity, equity and inclusion efforts. But a vaguely worded memo issued by the Office of Management and Budget, combined with incomplete answers from the White House throughout the day, left lawmakers, public officials and average Americans struggling to figure out what programs would be af- fected by the pause. Even temporary interruptions in funding could cause layoffs or delays in public services. “This sort of came out of the blue,” said David Smith, a spokesperson for the Shawnee Mission School District in Kansas, one of countless districts that receive federal funding. Now they’re trying to figure out what it means “based on zero information.” Democrats argued that the president had no right to unilaterally stop spend- ing money appropriated by Congress. Just minutes after AliKhan made her ruling, Democratic attorneys general from 22 states and the District of Col- umbia filed their own lawsuit seeking to block and permanently prevent the administration from cutting off federal funding. “There is no question this policy is reckless, dangerous, illegal and uncon- stitutional,” New York Attorney Gener- al Letitia James said. AliKhan, who was appointed by presi- dent Joe Biden, questioned how much the details of the funding freeze had been nailed down as she issued her or- der. “It seems like the federal government currently doesn’t actually know the full extent of the programs that are going to be subject to the pause,” she said. Jessica Morton, an attorney for the National Council of Nonprofits, which brought the suit, said the group has tens of thousands of members around the country who could be affected. “Our client members have reported being extremely concerned about hav- ing to shutter if there’s even a brief pause,” Morton said. Justice Department attorney Daniel Schwei argued that the freeze shouldn’t be put on hold because the plaintiffs hadn’t specified anyone who would im- mediately lose funding if it does go into effect. Trump administration officials said programs that provide direct assist- ance to Americans would not be affect- ed, such as Medicare, Social Security, student loans and food stamps. But they sometimes struggled to provide a clear picture. White House press secretary Karo- line Leavitt initially would not say whether Medicaid was exempted from the freeze, but the administration later clarified that it was. Although Trump had promised to turn Washington upside down if elect- ed to a second term, the effects of his effort to pause funding were being felt far from the nation’s capital. Organiz- ations like Meals on Wheels, which re- ceives federal money to deliver food to the elderly, were worried about getting cut off. “The lack of clarity and uncertainty right now is creating chaos,” spokes- woman Jenny Young said. She added that “seniors may panic not knowing where their next meals will come from.” The National Science Foundation postponed this week’s panels for re- viewing grant applications. Officials in Prichard, Ala., feared they wouldn’t receive infrastructure funding to fix their leaking drinking water system. Republican leaders in Louisiana said they were “seeking clarity” to ensure nothing was “jeopardizing financial stability of the state.” “Trump’s actions would wreak havoc in red and blue communities every- where,” said Sen. Patty Murray of Washington, the top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee. “We are talking about our small towns, our cities, our school districts.” The full scope of the administration’s review was spelled out in a 51-page spreadsheet sent to federal agencies and viewed by The Associated Press. Each line was a different government initiative, from pool safety to tribal workforce development to special edu- cation. Officials were directed to answer a series of yes or no questions for every item on the list, including “does this program promote gender ideology?” or “does this program promote or support in any way abortion?” Responses are due by Feb. 7. Trillions of dollars are potentially under review. Grants that have been awarded but not spent are also suppos- ed to be halted if they might violate one of Trump’s executive orders. “The use of Federal resources to ad- vance 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,” wrote Matthew Vaeth, the acting director of the Office of Management and Budget, in a memo distributed Monday. Vaeth wrote that “each agency must complete a comprehensive analysis of all of their Federal financial assistance programs to identify programs, pro- jects, and activities that may be impli- cated by any of the President’s execu- tive orders.” He also wrote that the pause should be implemented “to the extent permis- sible under applicable law.” The pause on grants and loans was scheduled to take effect at 5 p.m. EDT, just one day after agencies were in- formed of the decision. Leavitt, who held her first White House briefing on Tuesday, said the administration was trying to be “good stewards” of public money by making sure that there was “no more funding for transgenderism and wokeness.” She denied that Trump was deliber- ately challenging Congress to establish his dominance over the federal budget. “He’s just trying to ensure that the tax money going out the door in this very bankrupt city actually aligns with the will and the priorities of the Amer- ican people,” she said. — The Associated Press CHRIS MEGERIAN AND LINDSAY WHITEHURST Trump order aims to cut federal support for gender transitions for people under 19 WASHINGTON — U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday signed an executive order aimed at cutting fed- eral support for gender transitions for people under age 19, his latest move to roll back protections for transgender people across the country. “It is the policy of the United States that it will not fund, sponsor, promote, assist, or support the so-called ‘transi- tion’ of a child from one sex to another, and it will rigorously enforce all laws that prohibit or limit these destructive and life-altering procedures,” the order says. The order directs that federally-run insurance programs, including TRI- CARE for military families and Medic- aid, exclude coverage for such care and calls on the Department of Justice to vigorously pursue litigation and legis- lation to oppose the practice. Medicaid programs in some states cover gender-affirming care. The new order suggests that the practice could end, and targets hospitals and univer- sities that receive federal money and provide the care. The language in the executive or- der — using words such as “maiming,” “sterilizing” and “mutilation” — con- tradicts what is typical for gender-af- firming care in the United States. It also labels guidance from the World Professional Association for Trans- gender Health as “junk science.” On his Truth Social platform, Trump called gender-affirming care “barbaric medical procedures.” Major medical groups such as the American Medical Association and the American Academy of Pediatrics sup- port access to care. Young people who persistently iden- tify as a gender that differs from their sex assigned at birth are first evalu- ated by a team of professionals. Some may try a social transition, involving changing a hairstyle or pronouns. Some may later also receive puberty blockers or hormones. Surgery is extremely rare for min- ors. “It is deeply unfair to play politics with people’s lives and strip trans- gender young people, their families and their providers of the freedom to make necessary health care decisions,” said Human Rights Campaign President Kelley Robinson. The order encourages Congress to adopt a law allowing those who receive gender-affirming care and come to re- gret it, or their parents, to sue the pro- viders. It also directs the Justice Depart- ment to prioritize investigating states that protect access to gender-affirming care and “facilitate stripping custody from parents” who oppose the treat- ments for their children. Some Democratic-controlled states have adopted laws that seek to protect doctors who provide gender-affirming care to patients who travel from states where it’s banned for minors. Michel Lee Garrett, a trans woman whose teenage child only partially iden- tifies as a girl and uses they/them pro- nouns, said such policies aim to erase trans people from public life but will never succeed. Her child has not elected to pursue a medical transition, but the mother from State College, Penn., said she won’t stop fighting to preserve that option for her child and others. “I’ll always support my child’s needs, regardless of what policies may be in place or what may come … even if it meant trouble for me,” Lee Garrett said. — The Associated Press ;