The Supreme Court upended the constitutional separation of powers on Friday afternoon with a brief order allowing Donald Trump to unilaterally cancel $4 billion in foreign aid appropriated by Congress. In an apparent 6–3 decision, the conservative supermajority greenlit Trump’s so-called “pocket rescission,” ensuring that the money will expire before its intended beneficiaries receive it. It offered a single page of vague, threadbare justification, suggesting that the president’s authority over foreign affairs outweighs Congress’ control over spending. This view marks a radical rewriting of the Constitution that shifts a massive amount of power from the legislative branch to the executive. It essentially awards Trump a line-item veto over any part of the budget that is remotely connected to foreign policy—and, quite possibly, every dollar appropriated by Congress. And the court did all this without full briefing, oral argument, or a signed ruling, abusing the shadow docket yet again to hand Trump one of the biggest wins of his second term so far. https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2025/09/trump-supreme-court-pocket-rescission-constitution-congress-impoundment.html