President Donald Trump is trying to stop $4 billion in congressionally approved foreign aid from being spent, without Congress’s permission.
Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. this week allowed him to pause the spending, but the legislative branch can always simplify the issue by taking an up-or-down vote on his preferred policy.
On Aug. 28, Trump requested the funds — which include democracy promotion, development assistance and contributions to peacekeeping operations — not be spent.
An arcane budget law called the Impoundment Control Act allows him to pause the spending while Congress considers his demand. Yet Trump chose the end of August because the money is required to be spent by a certain day — and Trump is betting lawmakers will run out the clock rather than take a simple vote on what to do with the money.
That would allow him to indefinitely “impound” the expired funds. It’s known as a “pocket recission.”
Susan Collins (R-Maine), chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, responded to Trump’s request by saying that “any effort to rescind appropriated funds without congressional approval is a clear violation of the law.”
Other moderate Republicans issued similar statements, and even Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-South Dakota) expressed some concern, saying he agreed with the president on policy but worried about the process.
Still, the House Republican Conference — including Tom Cole (Oklahoma), chair of the House Appropriations Committee — has been notably quiet.
The Founders envisioned Congress as the preeminent branch of government, but that structure is creaking as the presidency has grown more powerful in recent decades.
The president unilaterally picking and choosing which congressional appropriations to spend would be a dramatic change even from a system that is already out of balance.
Lawmakers still have time to preserve their authority. They can include the rescissions as part of their spending package to avert a government shutdown at the end of the month. Or, on principle, they could reject the president’s request outright.
The White House picked this fight, but it’s up to lawmakers whether they want to lose it.
