US President Donald Trump's bid to freeze trillions of dollars in federal funding was thrown into confusion Wednesday when the White House appeared to withdraw the controversial plan -- then minutes later insisted that it had not.
Rafts of government aid programs and the health care system for millions of low-income Americans were up in the air after Trump ordered a halt to potentially trillions of dollars in grants, loans and other aid late Monday.
The move -- made in an order from White House's Office of Management and Budget -- sparked instant alarm and confusion, as well as a flurry of lawsuits before a judge issued a temporary injunction.
On Wednesday, the Office of Management and Budget issued a terse notification saying the freezing of aid order had been "rescinded." However, soon after Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt announced that the spending freezes remained in place -- and only the memo from the budget office was rescinded. "This is NOT a rescission of the federal funding freeze" which remains in "full force," she said on X.
