Trump Signs New Executive Order on Federal Grant Oversight

President Trump has recently enacted an executive order aimed at requiring political appointees to oversee the approval of federal grants. This directive, described as “Improved federal grant monitoring,” was signed on Thursday.

The goal of this order is to enhance the scrutiny of previously awarded federal grants, especially those tied to research and administrative costs that have raised some eyebrows. This initiative ties into the broader “America First” agenda pursued by the Trump administration regarding federal spending.

“All taxes spent by the government should improve America’s lives or advance American interests,” the executive order states in its opening section. “This doesn’t often happen.”

The order goes on to critique the distribution of federal funds to various projects, labeling some as promoting “absurd ideology.” It specifically mentions initiatives like “Ecuadorian drug shows” and “transgender sexual education programs.”

Additionally, the executive order highlights concerns about the risks associated with wasteful spending. It also takes aim at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for their management of taxpayer funds, particularly referencing “unsafe labs in China’s Wuhan – possibly the source of the Covid-19 pandemic.”

🚨Blake: President Trump has just signed an executive order requiring that he or she is appointed to appoint an appointee to register with all government grants. This greatly reduces waste, fraud and abuse. Great idea!

The executive order emphasizes that the government has been neglectful in assessing the effectiveness of federally funded projects, underscoring the necessity for better oversight of initiatives that appear to serve beneficial purposes on the surface.

Moving forward, agency managers will need to appoint a senior individual responsible for announcing funding and reviewing discretionary grants, ensuring these align with agency priorities and broader national needs. This new review process will involve multiple levels of assessment for funding applicants.

Furthermore, senior appointees are required to annually evaluate discretionary awards to ensure consistency and track progress.

No announcements regarding new funding opportunities will take place until the review process laid out in the executive order is fully implemented.