USA – A radical White House freeze on potentially trillions of dollars in US government spending including on grants and loans was due to take effect Tuesday, sparking accusations that President Donald Trump is violating the constitution. The order from the White House budget office, issued a week after Trump began his second term, threatens to disrupt hundreds of billions of dollars in funding for everything from local governments to education and small business loans. It was not clear in the memo, issued Monday by acting director of the Office of Management and Budget Matthew Vaeth, how such a pause on disbursements of funding will work or for how long. The extraordinary measure follows a similar announcement that US foreign aid is also frozen.

Trump won the presidency in part on promises to dismantle large sections of the US government and to slash spending. He has made clear he intends to review all federal programs — and many of the employees — to check that they meet his political goals. (Jamaicaobserver)