Trump Shuts Down Trump Shutdown — Sort Of

In an abrupt turnabout Jan. 29, the Trump Office of Management of Budget (OMB) rescinded its memo from Monday that had announced plans to freeze all federal grants and loans. The administration had spent much of Jan. 28 rolling back particular elements of the sweeping order, and around 5 p.m. Eastern time, Judge Loren AliKhan put the entire order on hold pending a hearing next Monday, in a case brought by the National Council of Nonprofits and three other organizations. Rescinding the order is a clear sign of surrender to reality: the American people might grumble a lot about government in the abstract, but they’ll readily get up in arms if specific programs they depend on are threatened.

The surrender could be only temporary, however. The first sign of this came when White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt tweeted, “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.”

But this statement was cited shortly later by plaintiffs in another case — brought by attorneys general of 22 states and the District of Columbia. It was cited as evidence the funding freeze was still active and their lawsuit should continue. And Judge Jack McConnell said he intends to issue a new restraining order, on the ground that her statement undercut the rescission memo.

So the rescission memo is blocked — for now. But in the long run, constitutional law professor Steve Vladeck warned on Bluesky:

Don’t forget what happened with the travel ban during the first Trump administration:

Version 1: Clumsy, overbroad, and poorly implemented; blocked by courts; withdrawn.

Version 2: Slightly less clumsy; slightly less overbroad; poorly implemented; blocked by courts; expired.

Version 3: Upheld.

One thing is certain: After a long string of illegal actions in a very short period of time, this one has struck a very loud chord. Whatever lies ahead will not be done shrouded in silence.