Trump admin seeking to pull funding from local governments slapped with judge’s preliminary injunction

A federal judge in Washington state on Tuesday granted Denver and other local governments a preliminary injunction against the Trump administration’s threats to withhold federal funding for transportation programs.

Denver and dozens of other plaintiffs filed the lawsuit in May, claiming that the Trump administration’s threats to withhold an estimated $4 billion in critical federal grants exceed the Executive Branch’s authority and were thereby “unlawful and politically motivated funding conditions,” according to the injunction order.

The judge ruled that the Trump administration likely violated the Separation of Powers doctrine, and that its threats to cut funding constitute harm.

“It is this looming risk itself that is the injury, and one that Plaintiffs are already suffering,” the order stated. “Courts evaluating similar circumstances have recognized that this injury of acute budgetary uncertainty is irreparable.”

FEDERAL APPEALS COURT THROWS ROADBLOCK AT TRUMP’S EDUCATION REFORM AGENDA

President Donald Trump speaks to reporters after signing a proclamation in the Oval Office at the White House on April 17 in Washington, D.C. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)

The lawsuit was filed after U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy issued a memo in April that warned recipients of federal funding that they could lose grants if they did not adhere to the Trump administration’s stance on diversity, equity and inclusion programs.

Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy testifies during a hearing before the House Appropriations Committee in the Rayburn House Office Building on May 14 in Washington, D.C. (Samuel Corum/Getty Images)

Duffy’s memo further stated that failure to help enforce federal immigration policy could also lead to loss of funding.

FEDERAL JUDGE RULES AGAINST TRUMP ORDER HALTING SEX CHANGE PROCEDURES IN PRISONS

Denver Mayor Mike Johnston praised the judge’s decision on Wednesday.

Denver Mayor Mike Johnston said the city appreciated the judge’s decision to temporarily block the Trump administration’s efforts to withhold the funding. (Getty Images, File)

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“Denver follows all laws — federal, state, and local — and it should not be so much to ask the White House to do the same,” Johnston said in a statement. “We appreciate the court’s swift and precise ruling protecting the federal funding that Denverites deserve.”