Trump Administration Targets Blue States for Funding Cuts
WASHINGTON – The Trump administration is instructing the Department of Transportation (DOT) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to retrieve over $1.5 billion in subsidies from blue states that are seen as endorsing what some officials claim are “woke” or inefficient energy policies, as reported.
On Wednesday, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) ordered the DOT to cancel more than $943 million in grants and instructed the CDC to withhold at least $602 million in federal funds from states like New York, California, Minnesota, Illinois, and Colorado.
Some of this transportation funding, part of the bipartisan infrastructure law of 2021, was allocated for projects related to electric buses and charging infrastructure.
Illinois stands to receive the highest share of these grants, with $100 million allocated for electric vehicle charging stations.
OMB representatives indicated that a portion of the health care funds was established under former President Joe Biden, but they deemed it inconsistent with current administration policies on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) as well as transgender health care.
An OMB spokesperson mentioned that these funding cuts are just the initial phase, and further subsidy removals are anticipated.
Should the Trump administration follow through with these cancellations, New York City could lose $15 million allocated for its DOT’s electric vehicle charging program, along with another $15 million for a similar project at the State University of New York.
This would also mean a loss of $15 million in federal funds for electric vehicle chargers in economically underprivileged areas of Minnesota.
Further, the federal government may require Boulder County, Colorado, to repay $4.9 million meant for electric vehicle chargers in low- to moderate-income neighborhoods, while Illinois must return $3.6 million designated for translating the commercial driver’s license exam into Spanish.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy has already threatened to reclaim tens of millions of dollars in other federal funds due to New York’s lax commercial driver’s license regulations for foreign drivers.
The cuts affecting California’s Department of Transportation include $15 million for a network of electric vehicle chargers intended to serve disadvantaged communities in nine counties near San Francisco. Additionally, $2 million was earmarked for California’s climate change adaptation strategies.
Authorities clarified that none of the rescinded CDC grants were specific to disease research; rather, they were supplemental funds for state-level initiatives.
Chicago was set to receive $7 million for research focusing on “youth, racial and ethnic minorities, and men who have sex with men,” groups identified as disproportionately affected by sexually transmitted diseases.
Another $7.2 million was allocated to the American Medical Association in Illinois, which was involved in initiatives for children undergoing gender transitions.
Colorado was set to receive at least $3 million aimed at addressing COVID-19 health disparities among vulnerable populations, including racial and ethnic minorities, alongside funding for partnerships with local health departments and clinics.
Los Angeles County was due to receive $1.1 million for HIV behavioral research, out of grants that totaled $4.3 million and were approved back in January 2022.
California universities also awaited hundreds of thousands in federal funds meant for researching various public health issues impacting LGBTQ communities and other minority groups.
Democratic leaders, including New York Governor Kathy Hochul, accused the Trump administration of using federal funds as political leverage, particularly concerning programs for social services.
Hochul stated, “We will fight this with all our heart and soul, because our children should not be political pawns in the kind of battles that Donald Trump is waging with blue state governors.”
Responses from Hochul and fellow Democratic governors from California, Minnesota, Illinois, and Colorado were not immediately available.
