Judge temporarily blocks 2,200 USAID workers from being placed on leave by midnight

A Trump-appointed justice said astatine an exigency proceeding connected Friday that helium would enactment a impermanent artifact connected the administration's program to enactment 2,200 U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) employees connected paid permission by midnight, Fox News has learned. 

He besides told a authorities lawyer that he’s not definite whether helium would see the 500 employees already placed connected permission successful his order. 

U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols sided with 2 national worker associations – the American Foreign Service Association and the American Federation of Government Employees – who filed lawsuits implicit the bid connected Thursday. 

Government officials "failed to admit the catastrophic consequences of their actions, some arsenic they pertain to American workers, the lives of millions astir the world, and to US nationalist interests," the suit says. 

Nichols said that the plaintiffs had "established irreparable harm," adding that "there’s zero harm to the authorities to pausing this for immoderate abbreviated play of time." 

Nichols added that it would beryllium a "very limited" impermanent restraining order.

"CLOSE IT DOWN!" President Trump wrote connected Truth Social earlier Friday of the U.S. bureau that oversees planetary development. 

An authoritative with USAID told reporters connected Friday that the bureau had "ceased to exist," with the bulk of employees gone and backing stopped. 

Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said that the astir important life-saving programs administrated by USAID overseas were fixed waivers to continue. 

USAID was founded by President John F. Kennedy successful 1961 and had much than 10,000 employees and a fund of astir $40 cardinal a year. 

On Friday, the USAID website said that astatine midnight "all USAID nonstop prosecute unit volition beryllium placed connected administrative permission globally, with the objection of designated unit liable for mission-critical functions, halfway enactment and specially designated programs. Essential unit expected to proceed moving volition beryllium informed by Agency enactment by Thursday, February 6, astatine 3:00pm (EST)." 

Trump and Elon Musk, who runs the cost-cutting Department of Government Efficiency, person said they mightiness determination USAID’s surviving life-saving programs nether the State Department. 

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Rubio said the U.S. authorities volition proceed providing overseas aid, "but it is going to beryllium overseas assistance that makes consciousness and is aligned with our nationalist interest."

Democratic critics person said the determination is amerciable and needs Congressional approval. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report.