Trump budget officials claim sweeping spending power from Congress, records show

Source: Washington Post

Trump budget officials claim sweeping spending power from Congress, records show

Russell Vought, the White House budget director and architect of Project 2025, would have vast authority to approve or block billions in federal spending, the records show.

August 19, 2025 at 5:00 a.m. EDT Today at 5:00 a.m. EDT
4 min


Russell Vought, then the acting director of the Office of Management and Budget, at a White House press briefing in 2019. (Evan Vucci/AP)

By Riley Beggin and Jacob Bogage

The Trump administration is asserting authority to withhold billions of dollars from low-income housing services, education assistance, medical research grants and other programs approved by Congress, according to public documents released Monday.

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By Riley Beggin
Riley Beggin covers taxes, spending, deficits and legislation affecting the broader economy on Capitol Hill. She joined The Washington Post in July 2025. She previously covered Congress for USA Today, wrote about economic and automotive policy for The Detroit News, and reported on Michigan politics for Bridge Michigan.follow on X@rbeggin

By Jacob Bogage
Jacob Bogage covers the Trump administration's economic policy for The Washington Post, where he's worked since 2015. Contact him securely on Signal: jacobbogage.87. follow on X@jacobbogage

Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/08/19/trump-budget-congress-impoundment/