We have major news to share on one of Public Citizen’s 18 (so far) lawsuits
against the Trump regime.

Last week, a federal court granted our motion for a preliminary injunction in a
lawsuit over the Trump administration’s refusal to carry out foreign assistance
spending required by law. In other words, the court told the regime that it must
go forward with congressionally enacted funding, which will otherwise expire at
the end of this month.

However — yesterday morning — the administration went running to the Supreme
Court and asked the justices to suspend the injunction so that it can keep
refusing to commit the funding and allow it to expire.

Remember, of the three branches of the federal government, it is the legislative
branch (i.e. Congress) that has the constitutional authority to decide how to
spend taxpayer dollars. This is commonly known as the “power of the purse.” But
the Trump regime — in flagrant violation of the Constitution and 236 years of
precedent — is openly trying to usurp that power by refusing to commit funding
as required by laws enacted by Congress.

As Lauren Bateman, a member of Public Citizen’s legal team and the lead lawyer
on this case, told the national media about the preliminary injunction: “The
order emphatically rejects the administration’s argument that following
appropriations laws is optional. The court’s rejection of the president’s
attempt to unilaterally impound billions of dollars of foreign assistance funds
is a critical victory for the rule of law.”

A few notes about foreign assistance:

* Polls reveal that many Americans think foreign aid accounts for 25% or even
50% of all federal spending and that they would prefer it to be something
like 10% instead. In reality, only about 1% of the federal budget — just one
penny out of every dollar — goes to foreign aid.

* With that relatively modest expenditure, American aid helps millions and
millions of people all across the world who are facing famine and
malnutrition, illness and disease, oppression, disaster, and death.

* We are the richest country on Earth. But in 2023, there were 24 other
countries that gave more, as a percentage of their gross national income, in
development aid than the United States did. Yet it seems that Donald Trump
won’t be happy until America is dead last on that list.

MORE ABOUT TAKING THE TRUMP REGIME TO COURT

The Trump administration is unilaterally, unconstitutionally, and unlawfully
dismantling the federal government — our government — from Cabinet-level departments that have their own stately
buildings here in Washington, D.C., to smaller agencies that go largely
unnoticed as they do the routine, unheralded work that makes for a functioning
country.

Public Citizen is doing everything we can — within our modest means — to fight
back at every turn. It’s David and Goliath for sure, but we will never back
down. Even where we haven’t (yet) notched definitive victories in court, we are
slowing down the regime and making it work a lot harder in pursuit of its desire
for absolute power.

This foreign assistance case is just one of the 18 lawsuits we have filed (so
far) against the administration since Trump returned to power. Are these
lawsuits alone enough to fully defeat Trump and MAGA? Of course not. But are
they a meaningful part of the pushback needed to collectively save our country?
No doubt about it.

What you and Public Citizen are doing together matters. What hundreds of other
organizations, big and small, are doing matters. What millions upon millions of
our fellow Americans are doing matters. We believe that to our core. We take
solace in that. And we draw inspiration from that. We hope you do, too.

If you can, please donate today to support Public Citizen’s work standing up to
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For progress,

- Lisa Gilbert & Robert Weissman, Co-Presidents of Public Citizen


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