On August 7, President Donald Trump enacted an executive order requiring a review of federal research grant allocations by political appointees, triggering considerable backlash from the U.S. academic research sector. This order seeks to guarantee that grant funding is in accordance with the administration’s priorities and permits the cancellation of initiatives considered to no longer support agency priorities or the national interest. The directive stresses the necessity for enhanced supervision of agency grant distribution, asserting that more thorough evaluations will benefit the American populace and avert redundancy across agencies.
Nevertheless, this initiative has faced reproach from prominent members of the research community. The Council on Governmental Relations, a group representing research universities and institutes, swiftly condemned the order, contending that it overlooks scientific merit by assigning political appointees authority over funding choices. Matt Owens, the association’s president, urged the administration to withdraw the order, emphasizing the danger it presents to the integrity of scientific inquiry.
Barbara Snyder, president of the Association of American Universities, conveyed analogous worries, cautioning that the order threatens the United States’s dominance in science, technology, and innovation by replacing a merit-driven approach with politically motivated decision-making. She also indicated that the order would introduce additional bureaucratic obstacles, reducing quality and prolonging the grant assessment process.
Joanne Padron Carney, chief government relations officer of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, reiterated these concerns, highlighting that the order imposes unnecessary bureaucracy and generates delays in scientific advancement during a time of international scientific rivalry.
The academic community’s vigorous dissent highlights the friction between political oversight and scientific independence, raising concerns about the future trajectory of federally funded research in the United States.