On Wednesday, the Trump administration walked back the Office of Management & Budget (OMB) memo regarding the federal aid freeze announced earlier.
The White House Office of Management and Budget has rescinded the federal aid freeze, according to a memo obtained by CNN from a Trump administration official.
“OMB Memorandum M-25-13 is rescinded. If you have questions about implementing the President’s Executive Orders, please contact your agency General Counsel,” the memo reads.
The White House budget office had ordered the pause on federal grants and loans, according to an internal memorandum sent Monday, which unleashed confusion and anxiety even as the White House said it was not as sweeping an order as it appeared.
Advertisement
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, in a post on X, notes that this was only the rescinding of the OMB memo and that President Trump’s executive orders regarding the freezes and reviews remain in place.
This is NOT a rescission of the federal funding freeze.
It is simply a rescission of the OMB memo.
Why? To end any confusion created by the court’s injunction.
The President’s EO’s on federal funding remain in full force and effect, and will be rigorously implemented.
— Karoline Leavitt (@PressSec) January 29, 2025
The funding freeze is wide-ranging, although some key items were exempt from the ordered reviews. Food assistance programs, such as SNAP, Head Start funding, and other aid programs are not affected. The freeze does affect programs that President Trump campaigned on ending. This OMB order appears to be the order implementing President Trump’s directions, which according to Press Secretary Leavitt, remain in effect.
Hundreds of programs touching all corners of the US were placed under review, according to a document released by the Office of Management and Budget.
The White House later issued a memo appearing to limit the scope of the federal freeze, saying it only encompasses types of programs that may run counter to Trump’s recent executive actions on immigration; foreign aid; climate and energy; gender identity; ending DEI initiatives and preventing federal funding for elective abortions.
Advertisement
The original executive orders put in place not a cessation but a pause in the federal aid programs pending review.
Federal agencies “must temporarily pause all activities related to obligation or disbursement of all Federal financial assistance,” White House Office of Management and Budget Acting Director Matthew Vaeth said in the original memorandum, a copy of which was obtained by CNN, citing administration priorities listed in past executive orders.
On Tuesday afternoon, a federal judge temporarily blocked part of the Trump administration’s aid freeze.
The legal case against the OMB statement was, according to one observer on X, likely rendered moot by the rescinding of the order.
Court has stayed order, so rescinding it moots that court case. OMB is likely to issue more specific directed freezes to prevent blanket injunctions & false framing of issue. https://t.co/Nf8tVX0IYc
— Margot Cleveland (@ProfMJCleveland) January 29, 2025
There’s an interesting bit of speculation in that X post. The original order was broad; several more targeted freezes for directed reviews may be a more efficient way to go about this. This was a high-altitude approach, whereas targeted freezes and reviews will not only be more focused and more accurate but will cause the political opposition to spend more time chasing their own tails. That’s worth doing.
Advertisement
Previously on RedState: BREAKING: Federal Judge Issues Stay of Trump’s Funding Freeze
Democrats Lose Their Minds Over Trump’s Funding Freeze, Then Flat-Out Lie About Its Impact
It seems the Trump administration decided this wasn’t the hill to die on. It’s a fair bet that there will be announcements of smaller-scale targeted freezes in the near future.
This is a developing story. We will update you as events warrant.
The headline to this story was updated post-publication for clarity.
