White House rescinds memo freezing federal grants

President Donald Trump's budget office on Wednesday rescinded a memo freezing spending on federal grants, less than two days after it sparked widespread confusion and legal challenges across the country.

The order on the federal grant freeze sparked widespread confusion among organizations that rely on Washington and their financial lifeline.

Trump issued order to pause federal grants, loans

The backstory:

Trump issued a directive on Monday to temporarily suspend all federal grants and loans, a move that could impact trillions of dollars in government funding and disrupt vital public programs relied upon by millions of Americans.

According to the White House memo, the suspension would begin on Jan. 28 at 5 p.m. EST. However, a federal judge temporarily blocked Trump's freeze minutes before it was set to go into effect on Tuesday.

Administration officials said federal assistance to individuals would not be affected, including Social Security, Medicare, food stamps, student loans and scholarships.

This is a developing story. Check back for more updates.

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