The order that froze trillions of dollars of federal grants and loans was published without vetting by key officials in the White House.

The initial White House order on Monday to freeze federal grants sparked confusion throughout Washington and nationwide.

A federal judge temporarily halted President Donald Trump's move to freeze all federal grants pending an analysis to root out "wokeness" in federal spending. But confusion reigned Tuesday in Chicago and beyond as leaders braced for serious potential cuts to an array of major programs.

Democrats are taking credit for ginning up a public reaction to a funding “pause.” But this is just the first of many battles.

The White House memo issued late Monday led to chaos and confusion as to what programs would be impacted by the freeze.

The Trump administration’s plan to implement a sweeping freeze of federal aid sparked immediate confusion, uncertainty and downright panic among nonprofits, local governments and other groups, many of which provide aid and services to some of the most at-need residents in Southern California.

Federal agencies have been instructed to assess their financial aid programs to determine which ones might be impacted.