Trump's Justice Department admits making multiple court flubs
President Donald Trump's Justice Department admitted to making multiple factual misrepresentations to a federal judge overseeing the legal battle over his authority to dismantle the U.S. Agency for Internal Development, reported Politico's Kyle Cheney.Trump, bolstered by his ally and benefactor, tec...
Justice Department. (Photo credit: Zack Frank / Shutterstock)
President Donald Trump's Justice Department admitted to making multiple factual misrepresentations to a federal judge overseeing the legal battle over his authority to dismantle the U.S. Agency for Internal Development, reported Politico's Kyle Cheney.
Trump, bolstered by his ally and benefactor, tech billionaire Elon Musk, has moved to suspend most of the staff of the critical foreign aid agency, and bring what's left of it under the umbrella of the State Department — which was immediately challenged in court as USAID is an agency authorized by Congress.
Yet in a new filing in federal court, Justice Department attorneys conceded two major false claims previously stated during the dispute.
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"DOJ acknowledges making two significant errors during a court hearing last week on efforts to dismantle USAID," noted Cheney. First, "It said only 500 employees had been placed on leave. Actual number was 2,140," and secondly, they said "only future contracts were stopped. Existing contracts were also stopped."
Trump's move to gut USAID was blocked last week by District Judge Carl Nichols, a judge Trump himself appointed to the bench.
This week, unions representing USAID workers filed a notice with the court that Trump is not currently complying with the judge's order — a development that comes as Vice President J.D. Vance is openly suggesting the administration should ignore judicial orders it considers illegitimate.