Trump seeks to withhold US$800mil in Congress-approved funds

US president Donald Trump sought on Friday to unilaterally withhold more than US$800 million in spending on immigration, race and education that Congress has approved.

The move was the latest salvo in a fight between the Trump administration and Congress over control of the nation’s spending.

“President Trump is committed to utilising all possible tools to cut wasteful and harmful government spending that does not benefit American citizens,” the White House said in a statement announcing the steps.

The statement outlined several programmes, including some focused on refugee assistance, racial-minority business development and overseas conservation.

The Constitution gives Congress the power of the purse, but the White House said the programmes supported illegal immigration, stoked racial tensions and promoted alarmist approaches to the environment.

The White House is deploying a rarely used technique known as a “pocket rescission” that bypasses Congress.

Senator Susan Collins, who chairs the chamber’s appropriations committee, described the step as “illegal.”

“This is the most recent attempt by this office of management and budget to undermine Congress’s Constitutional power of the purse,” said Collins, a member of Trump’s Republican Party fighting a tight race for reelection in Maine. “Any effort to rescind appropriated funds without congressional approval is a clear violation of the law.”

The Supreme Court last year declined to block Trump from using the same tactic to withhold US$4.9 billion in foreign aid Congress had approved, while litigation continued.