Judge Rebukes ‘Ham-Handed’ Trump Admin for Defying FEMA Order in Scathing Ruling

David Gilmour Oct 14th, 2025, 10:51 am

A federal judge accused the Trump administration of defying a court order prohibiting the withholding of disaster relief funding to pressure states into helping with federal immigration enforcement.

In a sharply worded ruling on Tuesday, U.S. District Judge William E. Smith said the administration “has done precisely what the Memorandum and Order forbids,” by conditioning Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and FEMA grants on states’ cooperation with federal immigration enforcement efforts.

“The fig leaf conditional nature of the requirement makes little difference,” Smith wrote. “No matter how confident Defendants may be of their chances on appeal, at presen

See Full Page