In a 6-3 decision, the justices granted the Trump administration’s emergency appeal, halting a lower court ruling that had ordered the previously appropriated funds to be released.
“This is a massive victory in restoring the President’s authority to implement his policies,” a spokesperson for the White House Office of Management and Budget told the New York Post. “Left-wing groups’ ability to seize control of the president’s agenda has been shut down.”
The majority of the justices found the “harms to the Executive’s conduct of foreign affairs appear to outweigh the potential harm faced by respondents.” They include the AIDS Vaccine Advocacy Coalition, Journalism Development Network, Center for Victims of Torture and the Global Health Council, The Post noted.
The Supreme Court’s ruling stopped short of weighing in on the larger issue of whether President Trump has the authority to unilaterally “impound” funds approved by Congress.