New York Attorney General Letitia James has once again set her sights on President Donald Trump, announcing plans for legal action against his administration’s recent pause on certain federal funding. For those familiar with James’ record, the move is hardly unexpected—she has been one of Trump’s most persistent legal adversaries over the years.
At the heart of her latest challenge is the Trump administration’s temporary suspension of all federal grants and loans. An internal memo from the White House budget office revealed that the pause was implemented to ensure compliance with the president’s executive orders, particularly those aimed at restricting spending on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, clean energy programs, and foreign aid.
“This administration’s pause on federal funding is reckless and dangerous,” AG James wrote on X Monday. “Programs in communities across the entire nation depend on this funding to support our families, and this action is only going to hurt them.” On Tuesday, James announced on X, “My office will be taking imminent legal action against this administration’s unconstitutional pause on federal funding. We won’t sit idly by while this administration harms our families.”
James’ allegations appear to be without merit. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB), led by Acting Director Matthew Vaeth, issued a memorandum on Monday ordering a temporary pause on federal financial assistance programs to ensure alignment with President Trump’s policy priorities. The memo underscored that more than $3 trillion of the federal government’s nearly $7 trillion Fiscal Year 2024 budget was allocated to grants and loans. Vaeth stated that the pause aims to ensure taxpayer dollars advance the Administration’s goals, including “unleashing American energy and manufacturing,” “ending wokeness,” and “promoting efficiency in government.”
Federal agencies were instructed to identify programs that conflict with President Trump’s new executive orders, such as “Protecting the American People Against Invasion” and “Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs.” The pause will not affect Social Security or Medicare, nor will it impact direct payments to individuals. Officials from the Trump administration argue that the pause is a necessary measure to ensure fiscal responsibility and alignment with the administration’s priorities. But that didn’t stop the anti-Trump DA from launching legal action for which New York residents, not her personally, have to foot the bill.