Washington — Trump Cancels Nearly $1 Billion in Approved Funding

President Donald Trump is canceling nearly $1 billion in federal spending that Congress had already approved, the White House said Friday, invoking a rarely used and legally contested executive power over funds Congress controls, according to The Guardian.

Trump's Office of Management and Budget said the rescission targets "the most harmful government spending," the Guardian reported, without providing a more specific dollar breakdown of the cuts in the material reviewed for this story.

What Did Trump's Office Cancel?

Most of the nearly $1 billion in canceled funding is directed at services for immigrants, including non-profit organizations that serve refugees and unaccompanied minors who entered the country illegally, according to the Guardian. A White House press release announcing the rescissions noted that some of the affected organizations are led by people who worked in the administration of former Democratic President Barack Obama, the outlet reported.

Why Does the White House Say the Cuts Are Necessary?

The administration argues the funding is no longer needed because illegal border crossings have declined considerably, according to the Guardian's reporting. That justification frames the rescission as a response to changed conditions on the ground rather than a rejection of the underlying programs' original purpose.

How Are Republicans and Democrats Responding?

The move drew immediate criticism from both sides of the aisle. Senator Susan Collins, the Maine Republican who chairs the Senate Appropriations Committee and is in a competitive re-election race, said the action came without warning or consultation with Congress. "Not only is the delay itself an impoundment that was not reported to Congress, but also it is a usurpation of Congress's appropriations powers," Collins said, according to the Guardian. "OMB is an agency of the executive branch. It does not get to decide which programs are worth funding."

"This is theft from the American people, plain and simple." — Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash.

Senator Patty Murray, the Washington Democrat who serves as vice-chair of the Appropriations Committee, was more pointed. "This is theft from the American people, plain and simple," Murray said in a statement cited by the Guardian. "These are funds Congress has delivered on a bipartisan basis and should be helping people – not cut off by a president more focused on building a ballroom than investing in families. Every Republican who voted for these bills should be furious, because [Russell] Vought is saying their votes don't count."

What Happens Next in Congress?

Collins said she intends to work with colleagues to address what she called "these illegal actions," though the Guardian's report does not detail a specific legislative remedy or timeline. The dispute centers on whether the president can unilaterally withhold or cancel appropriated funds — a practice known as impoundment — without formally notifying Congress, a question Collins raised directly in her statement. The clash sets up a potential test of the executive branch's authority over spending that Congress has already enacted into law, with appropriators from both parties signaling they view the cuts as an overreach even as the administration frames them as a response to reduced need at the border.