Sat Feb 08 05:06:43 UTC 2025: ## Federal Judge Halts Trump Administration’s USAID Purge, But Funding Freeze Remains

**Washington, D.C. – February 8, 2025** – A federal judge issued a temporary restraining order Friday, halting the Trump administration’s plan to place thousands of U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) workers on leave and force overseas staff to return to the U.S. within 30 days. However, the judge did not block the administration’s complete funding freeze of the agency, leaving its vital global aid programs in limbo.

U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols, a Trump appointee, sided with two government employee associations, who argued that the administration’s actions posed undue risk and hardship to USAID workers abroad. The administration, spearheaded by President Trump and his budget-cutting appointee Elon Musk, has aggressively targeted USAID, aiming to effectively shut down the six-decade-old agency. This has involved not only placing staff on leave and furlough, but also physically removing the agency’s name from its headquarters and seizing its computer servers.

While the judge’s order prevents the immediate mass leave and repatriation, the ongoing funding freeze effectively halts all USAID operations worldwide. This includes critically important programs such as a $450 million food aid initiative and water supply projects in Darfur, both of which have been suspended, according to USAID officials who dispute claims from Secretary of State Marco Rubio that essential programs were exempt.

The employee associations, along with Democratic lawmakers, contend that President Trump lacks the congressional authority to unilaterally dismantle USAID. The Department of Justice, however, argued that the administration’s actions are within its legal purview.

The ruling marks another legal setback for the Trump administration, following temporary blocks on similar policies aimed at incentivizing federal employee resignations and altering birthright citizenship laws. The future of USAID, and its crucial role in global aid and development, remains uncertain pending further court proceedings.

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