A federal judge temporarily blocked the Trump administration’s decision to send 2,200 employees of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) on forced leave.
Judge Carl Nichols in Washington, who was appointed by President Donald Trump, accepted a request from two federal employee associations and agreed to suspend plans to send employees on forced leave starting at midnight on Friday.
The federal employee associations filed a lawsuit, asking the federal court to stop the closure of USAID, arguing that President Donald Trump lacks the authority to shut down an agency created by Congressional legislation.
“SHUT IT DOWN,” President Trump wrote on social media on Friday, referring to USAID.
On Friday, the agency’s name on a sign outside USAID’s headquarters in Washington was covered with adhesive paper. Additionally, a flag was removed from the building, and someone had placed a bouquet of flowers at the entrance.
A small group of USAID officials, fewer than six, speaking to reporters on Friday, disagreed with Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s statement that vital overseas programs were being exempted and continuing.
“With hundreds of employees forced to leave and the cessation of funding, the agency ‘has ceased to exist,’” said one official.
The Trump administration and its ally, Elon Musk, who heads the Government Efficiency Department focused on budget cuts, have targeted USAID, posing an unprecedented challenge for the federal government and many of its programs.
The administration told remaining USAID officials on Thursday afternoon that it planned to reduce the staff, leaving fewer than 300 employees from the thousands of USAID workers worldwide.
Later on Thursday, a list was finalized with 611 employees who would remain at work, many of them to manage the repatriation of staff, contractors, and their families abroad, according to officials.
During the court session, Brett Shumate, a Department of Justice attorney, confirmed the number of 611 employees who would remain at work. /VOA
