WASHINGTON (CN) — A federal judge on Thursday pushed back the expiration date of a temporary restraining order preventing the Trump administration from placing thousands of U.S. Agency for International Development employees on administrative leave.
The order is now in place until Feb. 21, by which time U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols will decide whether he can block wider dismantling of the agency.
However, the Donald-Trump appointed judge expressed doubt that he had jurisdiction to grant the preliminary injunction requested by a union coalition representing USAID employees, because any injury from the agency’s closure could be deemed an employment injury for which the plaintiffs could seek damages only after the fact.
Last Friday Nichols blocked the government from putting 2,014 workers on paid leave, issuing a stay that was set to expire Friday, Feb. 14. The judge cited risks to USAID employees working in dangerous locations, such as the Democratic Republic of the Congo. MORE