White House aide says spending freeze isn't being rescinded despite memo

The White House is claiming the Wednesday move by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) rescinding a controversial order that froze a wide swath of federal financial assistance is not actually an end to curbing government spending.

“This is NOT a rescission of the federal funding freeze. It is simply a rescission of the OMB memo. Why? To end any confusion created by the court’s injunction. The President’s EO’s on federal funding remain in full force and effect, and will be rigorously implemented,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said on social media platform X.

Leavitt referred to the OMB memo issued Monday night that directed federal agencies to temporarily pause “all activities related to obligation or disbursement of all Federal financial assistance” while the government conducts a review to ensure spending aligns with President Trump’s agenda.

Trump on Wednesday afternoon blamed the media for the confusion over the Monday night memo and said his administration has already been able to identify government waste, including for training on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives and for “authorized payments to foreign organizations.”

“To correct any confusion that the media has purposely and somehow, for whatever reason created — Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid have not been affected by any action we’re taking in any way, shape or form. We are merely looking at parts of the big bureaucracy where there has been tremendous waste and fraud and abuse,” Trump said.

“I could stand here all day and tell you many things we have found. … These were the payments and types of payments affected by the temporary freeze,” he added.

In a longer statement, Leavitt outlined that Trump has targeted through executive orders in the past week certain types of spending and that Wednesday's memo rescission means the White House still plans to block those funds. That includes for programs like DEI initiatives in the federal government and the World Health Organization, from which Trump withdrew.

“In light of the injunction, OMB has rescinded the memo to end any confusion on federal policy created by the court ruling and the dishonest media coverage. The Executive Orders issued by the President on funding reviews remain in full force and effect and will be rigorously implemented by all agencies and departments,” Leavitt said in a statement.

She also called for an end to legal action against the first memo after U.S. District Judge Loren AliKhan temporarily blocked Trump’s freeze on federal aid minutes before it went into effect on Tuesday afternoon.

“This action should effectively end the court case and allow the government to focus on enforcing the President’s orders on controlling federal spending. In the coming weeks and months, more executive action will continue to end the egregious waste of federal funding,” Leavitt said.

The press secretary on Tuesday was questioned on the legality of the freeze and said it was “certainly within the confines of the law,” maintaining it is within the president’s power to freeze the funding.

She also emphasized that programs providing direct benefits to Americans, such as Medicare, Social Security and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, were not impacted by the pause and that the focus is on ensuring government spending aligns with Trump’s agenda.

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