Trump’s Federal Aid Cuts Met With Resistance

Two federal judges have blocked the Trump Administration’s efforts to cut all federal grant and loan programs. 

U.S. District Judge Loren AliKhan paused the cuts last Tuesday for a week to allow for full arguments on it. U.S District Judge John J. McConnell followed suit on Friday, siding with a coalition of 22 states. 

“The Executive cites no legal authority allowing it to do so; indeed, no federal law would authorize the Executive’s unilateral action here,” McConnell said in his ruling. 

Last Tuesday, January 27, President Donald Trump ordered a cut to all federal grants and loans. This meant that funding to impactful and effective programs that thousands of Americans depend on would be stopped. 

Trump’s actions pointed directly to his Project 2025 playbook, which he claimed he would not follow. These federal cuts take money out of the hands of the most vulnerable people in the country and put it back into the pockets of the wealthy through tax cuts. 

A memo released from Matthew Vaeth, acting director of the Office of Management and Budget, highlighted the Trump Administration’s reasoning for this decision. “The use of Federal resources to advance Marxist equity, transgenderism, and Green New Deal social engineering policies is a waste of taxpayer dollars that does not improve the day-to-day lives of those we serve,” Vaeth writes. 

This freeze buys right-wing lawmakers time to determine if these grants and loans align with Republican ideals. Trump’s order comes two days after he halted all U.S foreign aid and paused all renewable energy projects. 

However, this freeze will crucially disparage trillions of dollars invested in healthcare research, education, housing assistance, disaster relief, transportation and other economic initiatives. 

For example, the Fostering Access, Rights and Equity (FARE) grant program began in 2021 to help women workers learn about and access their employment rights and benefits. In 2024, they awarded around $1.4 million to women across four organizations who have been impacted by gender based workplace violence. 

The Women in Apprenticeship and Nontraditional Occupations (WANTO) grant helps to expand pathways for women to enter and lead in all industries. In 2024, they awarded around $6 million to nine community based organizations to increase women’s participation in apprenticeship roles and non-traditional occupations.  

These grants are just two of many that have cycled back into economic growth, but are threatened by Trump’s freeze. 

This pause will not affect Social Security or Medicare, but has the potential to halt payments to states and households that receive benefits like Medicaid, SNAP food stamps, and other programs. The memo says it will exercise “to the extent permissible under applicable law.” 

Democrats at the Capitol are outraged, calling this move “unlawful.” They’ve cited this freeze as a violation of the Impound Control Act (ICA) which limits a president’s right to exercise funding power that has already been approved by Congress.

Judge AliKhan expressed on Monday, February 3, that she is inclined to extend the temporary block of the funding freeze.

Trump Terminates First Woman to Lead a Branch of the Military

Last Tuesday, January 21, President Donald Trump terminated U.S Coast Guard Commandant Admiral Linda Lee Fagan. She was the first female leader to head a branch of the military. 

The Coast Guard appointment is a four-year term, but Fagan had only served two. She was nominated by former President Joe Biden to lead the Coast Guard in 2021 and assumed duties in 2022. 

Acting Secretary of Homeland Security Benjamin Huffman released the news of Fagan’s termination on the Coast Guard’s website, but a reason was not included. 

Fagan was terminated due to “leadership deficiencies, operational failures, and inability to advance the strategic objectives of the U.S Coast Guard,” according to an interview with a senior Department of Homeland Security official by CNN

The same official also cited reasons such as, “ineffective” deployment of the Coast Guard to assist with border security, dissatisfaction with recruitment and retention, efforts surrounding Diversity, Equity and Inclusion policies and delays and cost overruns on icebreakers and helicopters used in the Arctic region.” 

Trump’s advisor Elon Musk tweeted that “Undermining the US military and border security to spend money on racist/sexist DEI nonsense is no longer acceptable.”

Fagan was scrutinized for a “cover-up” of Operation Fouled Anchor in 2023, an internal Coast Guard investigation that proved various rapes and assault allegations from the late 1980s to 2006 in the agency. 

Since the public was made aware of Fouled Anchor, Fagan has worked to rebuild trust with the public and Congress. She has previously taken steps to remove a commanding officer who was substantiated in the investigation, testified twice and apologized for inaction and lack of transparency. 

Sexual assault is more prevalent in the military than in the rest of the country; survey results show that around 4.3% of women and 0.7% of men experience assault within one year. Under Fagan, the Coast Guard launched a new Safe to Report policy to eliminate barriers to reporting sexual assault.

During her tenure, the U.S Coast Guard exceeded its recruitment goals for the first time since 2017. 

A campaign promise of Donald Trump was to get rid of generals who he and his Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth deem as too “woke.” However, Fagan’s termination was met with backlash throughout the Capitol. 

Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) tweeted that Fagan “rightfully stood up for victims of sexual assault and bolstered recruitment.” 

Rep. Joe Courtney (D-CT) released a statement condemning Trump’s decision, calling it, “an abuse of power that slanders the good name and record of Admiral Fagan.” 

Admiral Kevin E. Lunday is now the Acting Commandment of the Coast Guard.

Cecile Richards, Feminist Trailblazer and Former Planned Parenthood President, Dies at 67

Photo by Aiden Frazier on Unsplash

Cecile Richards, former Planned Parenthood president and life-long feminist activist, passed away Monday, January 20, from brain cancer at 67. Richards was a leader in progressive politics for decades and was most known for cementing Planned Parenthood as a political powerhouse during contentious right-wing attacks leading up to and during the first Trump presidency. She stepped down as president of Planned Parenthood in 2017 and focused her efforts on leading Supermajority, an organization she co-founded to mobilize female voters. 

Richards was a devoted activist her entire life. Here are some of her greatest achievements:

  • Richards was born in Waco, Texas as the eldest daughter of Ann Richards, the 45th Texas governor who served from 1991 to 1995. Richards was politically outspoken from a young age and was disciplined in her public school for protesting the Vietnam War by wearing a black armband. After graduating from Brown University, Richards became a labor organizer for service workers. She served in organizations such as the Ford Foundation, America Votes and the Texas Freedom Network. 
  • Richards served as the president of Planned Parenthood from 2006-2018. During her time as president, she tripled the number of Planned Parenthood supporters to 11 million and made the organization easily accessible through the web, which allowed people to find local health centers.
  • In 2010, Richards placed Planned Parenthood behind the Affordable Care Act, which expanded access to sexual and reproductive healthcare. While the final bill did not pass, it expanded birth control access without copay for 64 million women. 
  • In 2010, Richards received the Puffin/Nation Prize for Creative Citizenship and in 2012, she was named Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People in the World. This past November, Richards was awarded the presidential Medal of Freedom from former president Joe Biden.
  • In 2013, Texas made big cuts to its state women’s health program and was about to shut down all five abortion providers in the state. However, Richards, as well as other Planned Parenthood leaders and Sen. Wendy Davis, filibustered the bill for 11 hours, successfully blocking its passage and protecting access to reproductive healthcare. 
  • In 2015, anti-abortion group Center for Medical Progress, accused Planned Parenthood of selling fetal body parts by releasing “secretly-recorded videos.” Planned Parenthood proved that the videos were edited to be purposefully misleading. Richards testified in court and garnered more public support for the abortion rights movement.     
  • In 2017, Trump pushed Congress to overturn the Affordable Care Act which would have blocked Medicaid patients from receiving Planned Parenthood care, so Richards fought back with weekly rallies at the Capitol and reminded the country about what would be at stake if access to Planned Parenthood was denied.
  • In 2019, Richards helped found the political action group, Supermajority, to build women’s political power and turn women into an influential voting bloc. 

Cecile Richards leaves behind a legacy of fearless advocacy, unwavering dedication to women’s rights, and a lifetime of fighting for equality. Her impact will continue to inspire generations to come. Rest in power.

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