“A set of sweeping policy changes unveiled by the White House would leave officials appointed by Donald Trump vetting every public grant issued to universities and nongovernmental organizations on the basis of their fidelity to ‘American values’, as defined by the president, triggering widespread concern.
All federal grants approved by Trump’s political appointees must ‘demonstrably advance the president’s policy priorities’, according to a lengthy proposal published by the office of management and budget (OMB).
Federal awards during the Biden administration ‘were often used during those years to promote a ‘woke’ policy agenda that did not reflect the values of the vast majority of the American public’, the proposal claims in its executive summary. ‘Collectively, these policies wasted a great amount of taxpayer resources and caused great harm to public trust in government.’
A 400-page document proposing rule changes was published on Friday without a press release or other formal attention, and first reported by the New York Times. Nonetheless, by Tuesday afternoon, more than 3,000 public comments had been offered about the proposal, almost exclusively in alarmed opposition.
‘The proposed federal legislation that will by-pass peer review of scientific grant proposals in favor of political oversight, allow grants to be terminated at any time, for any reason, and largely prevent the use of federal funds for publishing, attending meetings, or collaborating internationally would be another devastating blow to American science,’ wrote Andy McCammon, a chemistry research professor at the University of California at San Diego, and member of the editorial board of the National Academy of Sciences.”
