An analysis of the Trump administration’s actions to dismantle diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives in the federal government during the president’s first 100 days shows that around 750 DEI employees were either put on leave or dismissed, resulting in savings exceeding $2 billion.
This analysis, shared by the White House, indicated that significant savings were observed in agencies like the Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of Education, and the Department of Labor. For instance, over 256 DEI employees either lost their jobs or opted for retirement, which alone saved taxpayers more than $1.3 billion.
In total, the Trump administration has let go of about 745 DEI-related personnel throughout various government divisions, leading to an estimated overall saving of $2.333 billion for taxpayers.
A White House Principal’s assistant deputy director remarked, “President Trump has commanded the termination of the government’s extreme race-focused initiatives, and his orders are being implemented expeditiously.” The implication is that, according to them, common sense is being restored to government practices.
In conjunction with the staff reductions, the analysis brought attention to various cuts in funding for grants tied to DEI, as the Trump administration moved to eliminate these programs. This included cutting grants that focused on race-based initiatives and promotional commitments across several agencies. Moreover, many financial aids for activist organizations that concentrated on DEI training were slashed.
For instance, the State Department has canceled a $5 million grant aimed at “enhancing the leadership and impact of medium-sized, autonomous transgender and intersex human rights organizations.” Meanwhile, the Department of Agriculture noted a savings of $1.7 million by eliminating four years of DEI training that dealt with subjects like “microaggressions” and “preventing racism in marketing.”
One trainer shared in a LinkedIn session funded by past grants, “We have to acknowledge what happened.” They stressed the importance of accepting feedback from the market, suggesting that failing to do so could be seen as lacking awareness of issues like sexism and racism.
As part of the changes, the USDA also cut funds allocated for grants aimed at racial minorities, such as “Latin growers” and initiatives designed for “black women in regenerative farming.” They documented expenditures like $600,000 for studies on biological menstruation to back queer and transgender populations.
Similar materials reflecting DEI efforts were also discovered at the Department of Education. For example, a whiteboard displayed bullet points regarding racially-centered objectives and noted specific goals, including resources for black men and enhanced political engagement.
During Trump’s tenure, resistance emerged against what some called the “settlement patriarchy” in education policies, resulting in cuts to grants that promoted racial quotas and numerous training programs criticizing the traditional American educational framework.
An examination of the administration’s cuts also highlighted nearly 100 unresolved anti-Semitism cases from the Biden administration’s Civil Rights Office in education. Staff members from this office were advised by the previous administration to remain passive in handling certain civil rights claims.
Additionally, it was reported that the Biden administration didn’t comply with some requests from the Freedom of Information Act about DEI initiatives, leading to 4,000 outstanding requests to the Department of Labor regarding DEI employment training programs.
DEI programs faced significant reductions in the Health and Human Services Agency as well, with the National Institutes of Health alone cutting more than $350 million from DEI-related projects, including grants regarding structural racism and gender studies in animal research.
In a decisive shift, the Trump administration made comprehensive efforts to erase the Biden administration’s DEI focus, effectively ending DEI-linked training programs within several agencies. For example, they discontinued internal email functions that permitted individuals to list their pronouns.
The administration has also acted strongly across various sectors, eliminating DEI standards from over 2,900 supervisory performance assessments in the energy realm and disbanding the agency’s diversity council, which aimed to embed DEI principles broadly.
Trump’s responses against DEI originated from his first day in office during his second term, outlined in an executive order to end “radical and wasteful government DEI programs.” He alleged that the Biden administration was compelling Americans to comply with what he viewed as improper DEI initiatives.
“This effort was coordinated right from Biden’s inaugural day,” Trump’s order suggested.
