A pair of federal judges on Friday separately blocked President Donald Trump’s administration from unilaterally imposing new conditions on hundreds of millions in US Department of Homeland Security grants to cities including San Francisco, Los Angeles and New York.
US District Judge William Orrick in San Jose temporarily blocked President Donald Trump’s administration from unilaterally imposing new conditions on over $350 million in US Department of Homeland Security grants to more than two dozen cities and counties in California, Washington and Arizona.
In Chicago, US District Judge Manish Shah also entered an order temporarily blocking the new conditions on more than $100 million in DHS grants to New York, Boston and several other cities.
Both judges said the Trump administration likely violated the law when it issued executive orders that sought to cut off DHS funding to local governments unless they ended programs that support diversity, equity and inclusion and complied with the president’s other executive orders. Orrick additionally barred conditions that required local governments to support federal immigration enforcement and stop providing benefits to immigrants who are in the country illegally.
Jill Habig, the CEO of Public Rights Project, which is representing the cities and counties in the lawsuits, said in a statement that the rulings provide protection for communities that need to prevent and recover from disasters.
San Francisco, Los Angeles and San Diego were among several cities and counties that sued the Trump administration in California on September 30, saying the federal government was playing politics with DHS and Federal Emergency Management Agency grants that local governments use to prepare for and recover from disasters.
The cities and counties in the lawsuit represent 30 million people, and they said collectively they have over $350 million in grants at stake. Local governments use the federal grants to hire first responders, fund search and rescue operations, train employees in disaster response, and prepare for events like Super Bowl LX and the 2026 FIFA World Cup, according to Santa Clara County in California, the lead plaintiff in the lawsuit.
New York, Boston, Chicago and five other local governments filed their lawsuit over the funding conditions related to diversity on October 20.
The federal government has also threatened to criminally prosecute or claw back funds from localities that accept DHS money but do not comply with the new executive orders, according to the lawsuit.
Judges block Trump from cutting hundreds of millions in grants to cities, counties
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Judges block Trump from cutting hundreds of millions in grants to cities, counties
- The cities and counties in the lawsuit represent 30 million people, and they said collectively they have over $350 million in grants at stake
- Local governments use the federal grants to hire first responders, fund search and rescue operations, train employees in disaster response
Venezuela swears in 5,600 troops after US military build-up
- American forces have carried out deadly strikes on more than 20 vessels, killing at least 87
CARACAS: The Venezuelan army swore in 5,600 soldiers on Saturday, as the United States cranks up military pressure on the oil-producing country.
President Nicolas Maduro has called for stepped-up military recruitment after the United States deployed a fleet of warships and the world’s largest aircraft carrier to the Caribbean under the pretext of combating drug trafficking.
American forces have carried out deadly strikes on more than 20 vessels, killing at least 87.
Washington has accused Maduro of leading the alleged “Cartel of the Suns,” which it declared a terrorist organization last month.
Maduro asserts the American deployment aims to overthrow him and seize the country’s oil reserves.
“Under no circumstances will we allow an invasion by an imperialist force,” Col. Gabriel Rendon said Saturday during a ceremony at Fuerte Tiuna, Venezuela’s largest military complex, in Caracas.
According to official figures, Venezuela has around 200,000 troops and an additional 200,000 police officers.
A former opposition governor died in prison on Saturday where he had been detained on charges of terrorism and incitement, a rights group said.
Alfredo Diaz was at least the sixth opposition member to die in prison since November 2024.
They had been arrested following protests sparked by last July’s disputed election, when Maduro claimed a third term despite accusations of fraud.
The protests resulted in 28 deaths and around 2,400 arrests, with nearly 2,000 people released since then.
Diaz, governor of Nueva Esparta from 2017 to 2021, “had been imprisoned and held in isolation for a year; only one visit from his daughter was allowed,” said Alfredo Romero, director of the NGO Foro Penal, which defends political prisoners.
The group says there are at least 887 political prisoners in Venezuela.
Opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Maria Corina Machado condemned the deaths of political prisoners in Venezuela during “post-electoral repression.”
“The circumstances of these deaths — which include denial of medical care, inhumane conditions, isolation, torture, cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment — reveal a sustained pattern of state repression,” Machado said in a joint statement with Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia, the opposition candidate she believes won the election.
