By Brendan Pierson and John Kruzel (Reuters) - U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts on Wednesday paused a federal judge's order requiring President Donald Trump's administration to pay foreign aid funds to contractors and grant recipients.

Chief Justice John Roberts on Wednesday paused a court-imposed midnight deadline that would have required the Trump administration to release $2 billion in frozen foreign aid, a goal that the government has claimed it is unable to meet.

A federal judge had set a deadline for the administration to lift its funding freeze at USAID. The order by Chief Justice John Roberts puts that on hold.