Judge targeted by GOP for impeachment deals blow to Trump's FEMA objectives
A Rhode Island federal judge targeted for impeachment dealt the Trump administration a legal blow on Friday, ordering it to lift a freeze on federal funds.
U.S. District Judge John McConnell ordered the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to unfreeze federal funds to states after plaintiffs alleged the agency had failed to comply with an earlier court order.
The lawsuit was originally launched by 22 states and the District of Columbia, challenging the Trump administration's decision to block funding for programs like the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Climate Pollution Reduction Grant and other environmental initiatives.
Plaintiffs in the suit, including the states of New York, California, Illinois and Rhode Island, argued that FEMA's implementation of a manual review process for payment requests violated a previous preliminary injunction issued by McConnell. The states argued that the review "constitutes 'a categorical pause or freeze of funding appropriate by Congress.'"
The defendants, which include President Donald Trump and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), responded that the review did not violate the order because "FEMA is relying on its own independent authorities to implement the process rather than the OMB Directive."
McConnell concluded that the plaintiffs had "presented evidence that strongly suggests that FEMA is implementing this manual review process based, covertly, on the President's January 20, 2025 executive order."
"The Court reaffirms its preliminary injunction order," McConnell wrote.
McConnell had issued a restraining order in late January that enjoined the defendants from freezing federal funds. This came after OMB released a memo on Jan. 27 announcing the administration's plans to temporarily pause federal grants and loans. The White House later rescinded the memo on Jan. 29.
However, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said that the move didn't equate a "recission of the federal funding freeze."
After McConnell ordered the administration to comply with the restraining order, the government appealed to the First Circuit — which refused to stay the orders.
McConnell also recently made headlines after becoming one of several federal judges hit with impeachment articles.
Georgia Republican Rep. Andrew Clyde formally introduced his articles of impeachment against McConnell on March 24, after his initial announcement in February.
The articles, first shared with Fox News Digital, charged McConnell with abuse of power and conflicts of interest, stating he "knowingly politicized and weaponized his judicial position to advance his own political views and beliefs."
"The American people overwhelmingly voted for President Trump in November, providing a clear mandate to make our federal government more efficient," Clyde told Fox News Digital. "Yet Judge McConnell, who stands to benefit from his own injunction, is attempting to unilaterally obstruct the president's agenda and defy the will of the American people. Judge McConnell's actions are corrupt, dangerous, and worthy of impeachment."
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Hamilton Spectator
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Yahoo
38 minutes ago
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Ciattarelli wins GOP nomination. ‘We celebrate tonight and tomorrow we get back to work!'
HOLMDEL — Jack Ciattarelli took to the stage in the cavernous Bell Works complex the conquering hero, having won the Republican gubernatorial primary in a race that was called by some national news outlets only 17 minutes after the polls closed at 8 p.m. Tuesday. If anyone expected the former state assemblyman to move to the center as he accepted the Republican nomination in this sapphire blue state, his remarks before hundreds of supporters were unapologetically ruby red as he thanked President Donald Trump for putting his thumb on the scale in an endorsement that crushed his populist opponent Bill Spadea. 'We are not done! We are not done!' Ciattarelli reminded his cheering supporters as he took to a stage adorned by the U.S. and state flags. 'Fourteen months ago, we kicked off this campaign for this great state. Because of you, we won all 21 counties. … We celebrate tonight and tomorrow we get back to work!' In his comments, the newly-minted GOP nominee for governor said the state Democratic Party was more focused on pronouns than property taxes and he said that a vote for the newly-minted Democratic nominee for governor ― Mikie Sherrill ― was 'a vote for another four years of Phil Murphy.' He went on that the state needed an attorney general who would back parents and not 'sanctuary cities.' However, he described himself as 'a common sense Jersey guy' and warned voters not to be distracted by what he predicted would be a general election campaign in which Sherrill would repeatedly invoke Trump as a cudgel. If Republicans wanted to play a drinking game every time his Democratic opponent brought up Trump, they would likely remain drunk between 'now and Nov. 4,' he quipped. 'I truly believe the future of our state hangs in the balance,' Ciattarelli said of the stakes in this year's race. Contact Asbury Park Press reporter Erik Larsen at elarsen@ This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Jack Ciattarelli secures Republican nomination for NJ governor
