Evers urges Trump to reconsider pause of federal grants and loans

Warning of “disastrous consequences for the people of Wisconsin,” Gov. Tony Evers asked President Donald Trump to reconsider his decision to halt federal grant and loan programs Tuesday, just hours before a federal judge put Trump’s plans on hold.

Evers sent a letter to Trump in response to a memo sent by Trump’s budget office to all federal agencies Monday. The administration’s memo called on agencies to “temporarily pause all activities related to obligation or disbursement of all Federal financial assistance.” 

The pause, according to the memo, is aimed at determining if any of the spending may be impacted by Trump’s flurry of executive orders since taking office, “including, but not limited to, financial assistance of foreign aid, nongovernmental organizations, DEI, woke gender ideology, and the green new deal.”

The memo said federal funding would stop at 5 p.m. Tuesday. Shortly before that deadline hit, U.S. District Judge Loren AliKhan blocked the Trump administration from implementing the changes. AliKhan’s order will expire Monday, Feb. 3 at 5 p.m.

The administration’s announcement sparked confusion across the nation about what grants, loans and programs might be impacted. For state and local governments, universities and nonprofits, the stakes are incredibly high.

A summary of Wisconsin’s current state budget by Wisconsin’s nonpartisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau shows the state received more than $28 billion in federal revenue. That accounts for 28.2 percent of all its revenue.

In Evers’ letter to Trump, he urged the president to “please follow the law and reconsider this decision.”

“With very few details and specifics available, virtually no time for ample review and consideration, and no direct communication to date, states are left to plan for the worst, and Wisconsinites and millions of Americans who are rightfully alarmed and concerned by this unprecedented decision are left scrambling,” Evers wrote.

Evers said he is also “deeply concerned” the cessation of federal funding “could have disastrous consequences for the people of Wisconsin and our state” without elaborating.

“These benefits and investments — many of which were undoubtedly approved with bipartisan support by the U.S. Congress — are the law,” Evers wrote. “Although we may disagree on many issues, we should be able to agree that following the law is critically important.”

White House offers clarification amid confusion

During a press conference Tuesday, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters the Office of Management and Budget memo does not amount to “a blanket pause” on federal spending. She said “individual assistance” programs like Social Security, Medicare, food stamps and other benefits for low income individuals won’t be affected.

“It means no more funding for illegal DEI programs,” Leavitt said. “It means no more funding for the green new scam that has cost American taxpayers tens of billions of dollars. It means no more funding for transgenderism and wokeness across our federal bureaucracy and agencies. No more funding for Green New Deal social engineering policies.”

When asked whether the funding pause would affect individuals who receive Medicaid, Leavitt did not immediately have an answer. On Tuesday afternoon, some states reported losing access to the portals where they request and manage Medicaid spending.

Wisconsin Head Start programs lose, regain access to federal payment system

One local impact of the chaos surrounding Trump’s directive was felt by Head Start providers in Wisconsin.

Jen Bailey is the board president for the Head Start Wisconsin Association and executive director of Reach Dane, which provides child care services in Dane and Green counties. She told WPR she began hearing reports that some Head Start programs in the state were unable to access a federal payment management system at around 11:30 p.m. Monday night. By Tuesday morning, Bailey realized it was far more widespread.

“As we all started talking with each other, as directors, none of the programs were able to access the payment management system,” Bailey said. “Which I think led many folks to come to the conclusion that we were included in the pause in federal funding that was announced yesterday.”

Bailey said Head Start was mentioned a couple times during the White House press conference, and one of the Wisconsin directors received a memo from the White House saying their programs were not included in the funding freeze. She said it felt like a relief, but some programs were told to expect “potential significant delays in actually receiving the funds.”

“So, (we’re) certainly in a better place than we were this morning, where everyone was very frightened and looking at implementing emergency plans because of no funding,” Bailey said. “Now, I think we’re cautiously optimistic, but still waiting to see for programs to actually receive those funds.”

Members of Wisconsin’s Congressional delegation split

In a statement, Republican U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson defended the memo from Trump’s budget office, stating that it “explicitly makes clear this does not affect direct payments to individuals.”

“It makes sense for the Trump administration to want to make sure that federal taxpayer dollars are being used in a way that does not violate the President’s executive orders,” Johnson said.

Democratic U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin disagreed, and said in a statement she’s been hearing from constituents “worried about funding being cut off” for things like police officers, firefighters and child care.

“I want to be clear, Democrats and Republicans passed laws providing this funding for our kids, families, and communities, and ripping it away is an unconstitutional power grab. I will fight it at every step,” Baldwin said.

In a Tuesday morning post, U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore of Milwaukee called the directive from Trump’s budget office “another chaotic and stupid scheme that will hurt the economy and US global competitiveness.” She said Democrats will fight back, and she urged Republican members in Congress to “join us.” 

An emailed statement from U.S. Rep. Tony Wied of De Pere was supportive of Trump’s pause, calling it a “necessary step to rein in out-of-control federal spending and prioritize the needs of the American people.”

“I look forward to working with my House Republican colleagues to balance the budget, extend the Trump tax cuts and lower costs for all Wisconsinites,” Wied said.