Politics & Government
Trump Pauses $2.1B For Chicago Infrastructure Projects, Leveraging Government Shutdown To Pressure Democrats
He made a similar announcement earlier this week involving New York, where Vought said $18 million for infrastructure would be paused.
Updated on: October 3, 2025 / 7:34 AM CDT
White House budget director Russ Vought said the Trump administration will withhold $2.1 billion for Chicago infrastructure projects, specifically two long-awaited CTA expansion and modernization projects, expanding funding fights that have targeted Democratic areas during the government shutdown.
Find out what's happening in Chicagofor free with the latest updates from Patch.
The pause affects the CTA Red Line expansion project and the Red and Purple Line modernization project. Vought wrote on social media Friday that the money was "put on hold to ensure funding is not flowing via race-based contracting."
He made a similar announcement earlier this week involving New York, where Vought said $18 million for infrastructure would be paused, including funding for a new rail tunnel under the Hudson River.
