White House rescission strategy worries some GOP appropriators

Source: Roll Call

Posted September 12, 2025 at 3:53pm


Key House GOP appropriators are raising concerns about the White House’s use of a legally untested budgetary tool to terminate billions in foreign aid funds as the Supreme Court decides whether to weigh in on a tactic that could overhaul congressional funding power. Hard-line conservatives have cheered on the Trump administration’s use of a so-called pocket rescission as the White House seeks to cancel the foreign aid funds — money that is now at the center of a legal dispute before the Supreme Court.

Several key Republican appropriators in the House are expressing caution about the long-term implications of the tactic, saying it could be a double-edged sword for Republicans down the line if a Democratic president wishes to target funding liked by conservatives.

In late August, the White House told Congress it was unilaterally terminating $4.9 billion in foreign aid appropriations through a pocket rescission. Rep. Harold Rogers, R-Ky., a longtime appropriator who leads the House Commerce-Justice-Science Appropriations Subcommittee, said he doesn’t agree with the president’s use of a pocket rescission.

“It negates appropriations,” Rogers said. “And I think the Constitution, with the power of the purse resting in the Congress, negates any rescissions.”

Read more: https://rollcall.com/2025/09/12/white-house-rescission-strategy-worries-some-gop-appropriators/