Lisa Murkowski ‘Strongly’ Objects To Trump Admin Quest To Cancel $5 Billion In Foreign Aid

Republican Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski blasted the Trump White House on Tuesday for asking Congress to cancel about $5 billion in foreign aid funding and U.S. peacekeeping operations abroad, arguing the move is “unlawful” and could lead to a government shutdown.

Murkowski’s criticism of the latest White House rescission request comes after Republican Maine Sen. Susan Collins blasted the cost-saving measure as “illegal” on Friday. The two moderate Republicans, who have broken with the GOP conference during key votes this year, claim the Trump administration is usurping Congress’ “power of the purse” authority by clawing back funding without explicit approval by the legislative branch.

The White House plans to move forward with the $5 billion clawback funding request regardless whether Congress approves the measure due to the request being made so close to the end of the fiscal year on Sept 30. The foreign aid funds expire on that date — well before the end of Congress’ 45-day window to vote on the rescission request — effectively canceling the money in a maneuver known as a “pocket rescission.”

“Congress alone bears the constitutional responsibility for funding our government, and any effort to claw back resources outside of the appropriations process undermines that responsibility,” Murkowski wrote on the social media platform X. “These unilateral actions by OMB only threaten the good bipartisan work that has been done in committee and on the floor, and risk throwing the entire process into chaos.”

Murkowski notably opposed a $9 billion rescission request in July regarding unused foreign aid and public broadcasting funding, arguing that the move