According to Leavitt, Trump’s order remains “in full force and effect, and will be rigorously implemented” as the administration works to root out waste, fraud, and abuse, per a White House bulletin. The mixed messaging has led to confusion, while Democratic Congressional leaders, state, and local lawmakers have reacted with outrage as agencies that rely on the federal dollars have scrambled to understand what it means for their operations going forward.

“As I understand it, it is not clear what is happening,” Aaron Tax, SAGE’s managing director of government affairs and policy advocacy, told the Bay Area Reporter during a January 30 phone interview.

The agency partnered with the National Council of Nonprofits, the American Public Health Association, and Main Street Alliance to file its lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. Democracy Forward is representing the quartet in the legal challenge.

“We believe we are on the right side of history and we are confident if the court can hear our arguments, we will win,” said Tax. […]