Pennsylvania state and local officials are scrambling after President Donald Trump’s administration ordered a temporary pause on federal financial assistance, a halt that could disrupt trillions of dollars nationally.

ATLANTA (AP) — A White House order to freeze federal grants reflects a theory of presidential power that Donald Trump clearly endorsed during his 2024 campaign. The approach was further outlined in the Project 2025 governing treatise that candidate Trump furiously denied was a blueprint for his second administration.

A federal judge has temporarily blocked a Trump administration freeze on federal grants and loans that could total trillions of dollars and cause disruptions in health care research, education program

But the legal battle over the plan that set off panic and confusion across the country is just beginning, and it could become a constitutional clash over control of taxpayer money and expansion of executive power before the Supreme Court.

Americans.A White House memo ordering a broad freeze on federal grants and loans by 5 p.m. Tuesday left ordinary Americans who depend on such aid, as well as seasoned budget experts, scratching their heads.