Trump asks SCOTUS to uphold freeze on billions in USAID payments
Lawyers for the Trump administration filed an emergency appeal to the Supreme Court on Tuesday night asking the justices to halt a lower court injunction and allow it to freeze billions in foreign aid spending previously allocated by Congress — kicking the issue of USAID funding back to the high court for the second time in roughly six months. At issue is nearly $12 billion in funding allocated to the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), and owed by the end of the fiscal year in September. The majority of those funds were axed by President Donald Trump almost immediately after taking office, under the broader mantle of slashing foreign aid and eliminating so-called “waste, fraud, and abuse.” U.S. Solicitor General D. John Sauer told the Supreme Court in an emergency filing Tuesday that, absent intervention from the high court, the Trump administration would be forced to “rapidly obligate some $12 billion in foreign-aid funds” owed by September 30, or the end of the fiscal year. SCOTUS RULES ON NEARLY $2 BILLION IN FROZEN USAID PAYMENTS Those payments have been held up in court for months, after President Donald Trump signed an executive order on his first day back in office in January seeking to block nearly all foreign aid spending, as part of his administration’s broader crackdown on waste, fraud, and abuse. That order was blocked by a federal judge in D.C. earlier this year. That judge, U.S. District Judge Amir Ali, ordered the Trump administration to resume payments on billions of dollars in funding for USAID projects that were previously approved by Congress. That order was overturned this month by the U.S. District Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, which ruled 2-1 to vacate the lower court injunction. TRUMP TEMPORARILY THWARTED IN DOGE MISSION TO END USAID The appeals court partly vacated Judge Ali’s injunction, rejecting a request from foreign aid groups that had sought to restore the grant payments. The 2-1 majority also ruled that the plaintiffs failed to show Trump had acted “plainly” in excess of his executive branch authorities. Writing for the majority, Judge Karen L. Henderson, a President George H.W. Bush appointee, said that the plaintiffs lacked the proper cause of action to sue the Trump administration over its decision to withhold the funds, or what is known as impoundment. But the appeals court has not yet issued a mandate to enforce that ruling — meaning that, for now, the judge’s order, and the payment schedule he previously laid out — remains in place. FEDERAL JUDGE ORDERS TRUMP ADMINISTRATION TO PAY ‘UNLAWFULLY’ RESTRICTED USAID FUNDS Sauer argued in the emergency Supreme Court appeal that the foreign aid groups, which sued the Trump administration this year in order to claw back some of the grant money, have no legal authority to challenge the executive branch on the matter, which is technically under the legal jurisdiction of the Impoundment Control Act. “Congress did not upset the delicate interbranch balance by allowing for unlimited, unconstrained private suits,” Sauer wrote. “Any lingering dispute about the proper disposition of funds that the President seeks to rescind shortly before they expire should be left to the political branches, not effectively prejudged by the district court.” Plaintiffs, for their part, have argued that the executive branch lacks the authority to unilaterally withhold already-appropriated funds, under the Impoundment Control Act (ICA), as well as the Administrative Procedure Act. The Supreme Court previously ruled 5-4.
Chicago Teamsters, backed by mayor, want ICE blocked without warrants in strike fight
A Chicago Teamsters local is demanding a packaging company refuse to allow federal immigration enforcement on its property without warrants as a top tenet of its overall demands. The workers are seeking assurances from Mauser Packaging Solutions that it will require ICE to display a warrant signed by a judge before it is allowed on the property. The strike at Mauser’s plant in the heavily Hispanic “Little Village” neighborhood has lasted more than two months, and the Teamsters Local 705 negotiator recently refused the factory’s latest offer, according to multiple reports. About 140 people work at the plant, which reconditions metal barrels for chemical storage, and a plurality are Latino, according to the American Prospect. CHICAGO MAYOR CONCLUDES COUNCIL-DEMANDED PROBE OF CITY POLICE’S ROLE DURING RECENT ICE RAID One striking worker told the outlet that he and others are concerned that ICE may target them on a racial basis even if they are able to prove legal residency. The Prospect reported the strike began over a separate issue — allegations of employee surveillance during discussions with union representatives amid contract bargaining. The Illinois-based global company’s striking workers also collected a big-name voice in their court during that time: Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson. Johnson, a former teachers’ union figure, is familiar with similar situations and also agreed with the union’s aversion to federal law enforcement. CHICAGO MAYOR CALLS ICE RAIDS ‘TERRORISM,’ SAYS TRUMP’S AMERICA APPEARS AS IF ‘THE CONFEDERACY WOULD HAVE WON’ “This union and this strike is leading the way to ensure that this country knows that workers run this country,” Johnson said while rallying with strikers earlier this month. He said Mauser’s workers have the right to seek livable wages and environs “at a time in which we have a federal government coming after workers, immigrants, Brown and Black people,” according to the Chicago Sun-Times. Johnson demanded workers get protections to ensure “ICE agents do not get to run amok [or] create fear and come in and disrupt and destabilize our communities and workplaces, whether you are at work, school, church or the barbershop.” He noted that Chicago is a “welcoming city,” a term increasing in popularity among Democratic leaders due to the political stigma now associated with “sanctuary cities.” CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP In his remarks, Johnson also once again referred to President Donald Trump as a “dictator.” Updated figures from Chicago’s official crime dashboard now show 266 homicides this year, averaging more than one a day. Fox News Digital reached out to DHS and the Teamsters for comment. Mauser Packaging Solutions communications director Kimberly Braam told Fox News Digital later Wednesday the company “is aware of the concerns raised by members of Teamsters Local 705. We are committed to negotiating a fair and sustainable collective agreement with employees.” When asked about the union’s demands, a DHS spokesperson criticized Johnson, saying he and Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker “stand with criminal illegal aliens over the safety of American citizens.” The spokesperson also said “shameful rhetoric” against ICE has “fueled a culture of hate against law enforcement resulting in a 1,000 percent increase in assaults against them.” Fox News Digital’s Madison Colombo contributed to this report.
Socialist candidate Mamdani meets with NY Dems as they withhold endorsements
New York City Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani met with House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., and Rep. Yvette Clarke, D-N.Y., on Tuesday, as New York Democrats continue to withhold their endorsements ahead of the November election. “Zohran joined Congresswoman Clarke and Congressman Jeffries today to meet with Black clergy leaders from across central Brooklyn,” Mamdani campaign spokesperson Dora Pekec told Fox News. Jeffries and Clarke are among the Democratic leaders, including Gov. Kathy Hochul and Senate Minority Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer, who have yet to endorse Mamdani following his primary win in June. “They engaged in a wide-ranging discussion on a number of issues, including the urgent affordability crisis and the exodus of Black New Yorkers from the five boroughs—and Zohran shared his agenda to make sure every New Yorker can afford to continue to call this city home and live a life of dignity,” Mamdani’s campaign said. JEFFRIES DECLINES TO ENDORSE MAMDANI, SAYS THEY WILL MEET AFTER UGANDA TRIP Tuesday’s meeting was held at a church in Beford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, which is in the heart of Jeffries’ congressional district. Clarke, who also represents parts of Brooklyn, is chair of the Black Congressional Caucus. JEFFRIES GIVES ANSWER FOR NOT YET ENDORSING MAMDANI FOR NYC MAYOR “I think there was a very meaningful exchange,” Clarke told NY1 after the meeting. “Assemblyman Mamdani has a platform that he’s been running on, and they wanted to know how that’s applicable to the communities they reside in.” Clarke said the pastors “wanted an intimate setting where they could really speak to their lived experiences, the lived experiences of their congregants.” She told the same outlet last month that she wanted to ask Mamdani about his past refusal to condemn the term “globalize the intifada,” a term he has since said he would discourage others from using. “I think that it’s best that I have this conversation so that my credibility among my constituents is, you know, intact,” she told NY1, referencing the large Jewish community in her Brooklyn district. Jeffries met with Mamdani earlier this summer, but the House minority leader has stopped short of endorsing the self-described democratic socialist candidate. Jeffries confirmed to CNN’s “State of the Union” on Sunday his plan to meet with Mamdani this week, while reiterating that his first meeting with Mamdani in July was “very candid and constructive and community-centered.” “I don’t think we’ve withheld an endorsement,” Jeffries said. “We are engaging in a conversation about the future of New York City, about the issues that need to be addressed.” While both Democrats stopped short of endorsing Mamdani after their meeting on Tuesday, other New York Democrats, including Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Nydia Velázquez, Jerry Nadler and Adriano Espaillat have thrown their political weight behind the 33-year-old candidate. Mamdani also traveled to Washington, D.C., earlier this summer, where the mayoral hopeful and Ocasio-Cortez hosted a breakfast with national Democrats. Mamdani met with several progressive leaders, including Sen. Bernie Sanders, an early endorser of his campaign. Still, New York Democratic Reps. Tom Suozzi, Dan Goldman, Gregory Meeks, Ritchie Torres, George Latimer and Grace Meng have yet to endorse Mamdani. Fox News Digital reached out to Jeffries and Clarke for comment but did not immediately receive a response.
Why appearances can be deceiving at Gaza City food market
[unable to retrieve full-text content] Al Jazeera’s Hani Mahmoud reports, many products for sale are not nutritious enough for Gaza’s population.
This is the work of 5 journalists killed at Gaza’s Nasser Hospital
NewsFeed The five journalists killed in an Israeli attack on the Nasser Hospital had documented the relentless destruction of Gaza. Despite the risks, they continued reporting the impact of the war on Gaza’s people. Here we highlight some of their work. Published On 27 Aug 202527 Aug 2025 Adblock test (Why?)
The Cost of Control
With rare access to El Salvador’s most secure prisons, we explore the dark side of President Bukele’s gang crackdown. President Nayib Bukele introduced a state of emergency in El Salvador, using it to dismantle the violent gangs that had terrorised the Central American country for decades. Thousands of alleged gang members have been rounded up and locked away, many of them in CECOT, a huge, purpose-built high-security prison. The streets are now safe, but at what cost? Government forces are accused of arbitrarily detaining innocent people without trial or even charge, and in some cases, of violence and torture. People & Power gained rare access to two of El Salvador’s maximum-security prisons, looking behind the scenes of Bukele’s bid to bust the gangs. Published On 27 Aug 202527 Aug 2025 Adblock test (Why?)
Noida Dowry Death: Nikki Bhati’s sister-in-law makes BIG allegation on Payla family, says, ‘demanded SUV, 36 lakhs…’
Nikki Bhati’s sister in law has made a big allegation against her in-laws. She has alleged that she has also faced the same dowry harassment by Nikki’s brother Rohit Payla, father Bhikhari payla and family.
Nikki Bhati’s dowry murder case: How did concept of ‘Stridhan’ became a social evil?
The dowry system began as stridhan in ancient India to secure the bride’s future but became exploitative under British policies that denied women property rights. Despite legal reforms like the Dowry Prohibition Act, dowry-related violence remains a major social challenge in India.
Nikki Bhati’s Dowry Murder Case: What are legal rights and remedies every woman should know?
The recent Nikki Bhati case has renewed focus on dowry-related violence. This guide explains the legal protections and practical remedies available to women who face dowry harassment, so survivors know where to turn.
‘Give them dagger or pistol instead of…’: UP Mahapanchayat urges parents after Noida dowry murder case
In the wake of the outrage over a dowry-related murder in Greater Noida, a ‘mahapanchayat’ held in Baghpat has appealed to all parents to gift weapons to their daughters during ‘kanyadaan’, instead of the traditional dowry of gold, silver, or cash.