Trump is trampling on the Constitution. Does Congress even want to work anymore? | Opinion
Consolidating USAID under the State Department is a great idea. And limiting government spending makes perfect sense. But why won't Congress make sure President Trump follows the law?
This week, President Donald Trump announced the closure of the U.S. Agency for International Development and the consolidation of its essential functions into the State Department.
The independent agency has lost its way in recent years, funding some outlandish projects that conservatives have been keen to highlight as justification for its shutdown. However, the main goal of the agency is to expand U.S. global influence through acts of aid.
Ignoring the merits of the action entirely, the most interesting question this action raises is, is any of this even legal? Absolutely not.
Trump once again wishes to bypass Congress. Will they let him?
USAID was created through executive order in 1961, but it has been propped up as an agency by Congress through various legislative actions. The Foreign Affairs Reform and Restructuring Act of 1998 established USAID as an independent agency.
The president cannot supersede acts of Congress by executive order and must spend funds appropriated for specific purposes.
However, what has been done by executive order can be undone by executive order. Since USAID was created by executive order, President Donald Trump argues that he does have the power to consolidate the agency into the Department of State without congressional approval.
Even more trouble arises when it comes to USAID funding, which Congress has already appropriated. The agency manages more than $40 billion worth of appropriations, which Trump is obligated to spend for the purpose that Congress has designated them.
The question is what happens to the funds designated for programs that no longer are operating? Logistically, the outcome that makes sense is that the State Department now manages the spending of those funds for their intended purposes.
Congress may object to how exactly these funds are being used, which would spur an entirely different fight over use of funds.
The reality is that by the time these fights are sorted out, the agency is likely to be completely crippled due to layoffs and shuttering of overseas programs, which would be a logistical nightmare to ramp back up. Regardless of legality, Trump and Elon Musk may get their way regardless of the outcome of challenges.
Will Trump dismantle more departments without Congress?
Legal experts have theorized that this move might be a move in order to see what the Trump administration can get away with. Pushing the needle here without opposition could see the administration attempting to do away with more core agencies, such as the Department of Education.
However, if Congress is unwilling to assert its authority here, Trump and his administration could be emboldened to take further action to dismantle the executive bureaucracy without regard for the law.
In reality, Trump has acknowledged that he would need Congress’ help to eliminate the Education Department, a chief goal of his administration’s culling of the federal government. Despite his ambition, the chances of that happening are slim to none. Republicans would need a filibuster-proof majority in order to make such a change.
However, he could employ a similar strategy here, in which he undermines critical functions to a point that it is impossible for agencies to operate, regardless of the eventual outcome of legal challenges.
Previously, Congress has granted presidents the authority to reorganize the executive branch for a certain time frame. The authority was most recently granted to President Ronald Reagan for two months, but it has not been authorized to any president since. If Trump wanted to unilaterally change the executive landscape, this is the sort of delegation that would be required.
In this case, members of Congress must challenge Trump's actions and actually do their job. They must not simply allow Trump to claim authority that is theirs. Congress should be working with Trump to curb the bureaucracy and not be bystanders, as idealistic as that sounds.
Even good actions must go through the right process. That involves Congress.
I, for one, am glad that somebody is finally addressing the ridiculous spending our country has fallen victim to, and am relieved that there is a strong push to cull waste in our federal government.
However, good actions need to follow the proper process or they leave themselves vulnerable to challenge, such as Trump’s assertion that he does not require Congress in this case.
The consolidation of USAID under the State Department may be a good thing ‒ it is actually a great idea, in my view. However, this action needs to go through Congress, and Congress needs to ensure that Trump and Musk do not usurp its authority.
Instead, the likely outcome is that Trump continues to take advantage of a Congress that has no intention of actually working. Destroying the proper processes of our government is a dangerous road and one that Trump and Musk seem likely to test the limits of.
Dace Potas is an opinion columnist for Paste BN and a graduate of DePaul University with a degree in political science.