2/21/25: Ahead of Court Hearing, Chaos Reigns at NIH (Inside Higher Ed) A federal judge is set to hear arguments today for and against extending a block on the National Institutes of Health’s recent directive to cut support for medical research—much of which happens at universities—by more than $4 billion. https://www.insidehighered.com/news/government/science-research-policy/2025/02/21/nih-faces-pivotal-hearing-amid-layoffs-grant
See also: What’s at stake in Friday’s court hearing on NIH research indirect cost cuts (STAT) https://www.statnews.com/2025/02/20/trump-nih-research-cuts-lawsuit-challenges-cap-on-indirect-costs-fed-court-hearing/
2/20/25: The sector is losing faith that the federal government will honor its commitments. (The Chronicle, references COGR letter) “Our members will continue to honor the terms and conditions of federal grants and contracts, and we urge that the federal government reciprocate,” the presidents of the Association of American Universities, Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities, and Council on Governmental Relations wrote to Trump-administration officials on Tuesday . https://www.chronicle.com/newsletter/daily-briefing/2025-02-20?sra=true
2/20/25: Trump And Republicans Confront Democrats Over March Government Shutdown (Forbes) We are about to face a new crisis in Washington — the federal government may shut down in mid-March because it isn’t legally authorized to spend beyond that date. Only prompt action by President Donald Trump and Congress can prevent the shutdown. But the shutdown may happen because of battles between Trump and the Democrats over spending, and fights among the Republicans themselves. https://www.forbes.com/sites/richardmcgahey/2025/02/20/trump-republicans-confront-democrats-over-march-government-shutdown/
2/20/25: Trump’s siege of science: how the first 30 days unfolded and what’s next (Nature) In the wake of the Second World War, US leaders adopted the view that scientific progress is an “essential key to our security as a nation, to our better health, to more jobs, to a higher standard of living, and to our cultural progress”. And for the next eight decades, government officials on both sides of the political aisle agreed to invest in US science. Just one month into the second administration of Republican President Donald Trump , scientists fear that that long-time consensus is disintegrating. https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-025-00525-1
2/20/25: Despite a Judge’s Ruling, Large Swaths of NIH Funding Remain Effectively Frozen (The Chronicle) Even after a judge intervened to prohibit the Trump administration from freezing federal funding, large numbers of grants from the National Institutes of Health still can’t be paid out. That’s because the groups that review grant proposals and decide whether to fund them can no longer schedule their meetings, according to two emails from NIH officials obtained by The Chronicle. The hold on meetings has been described as a loophole that’s being exploited by the Trump administration to circumvent the judge’s ruling. https://www.chronicle.com/article/despite-a-judges-ruling-large-swaths-of-nih-funding-remain-effectively-frozen
2/19/25: The NIH Memo That Undercut Universities Came Directly From Trump Officials (The Atlantic) On the afternoon of Friday, February 7, as staff members were getting ready to leave the headquarters of the National Institutes of Health, just outside Washington, D.C., officials in the Office of Extramural Research received an unexpected memo. It came from the Department of Health and Human Services, which oversees the NIH, and arrived with clear instructions: Post this announcement on your website immediately. https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2025/02/nih-indirect-cost-memo-hhs/681736/
2/18/25: US science is feeling the Trump chill (Politico, COGR President Matt Owens quoted): While past administrations have steered the focus of U.S. research in new directions — from nanotechnology to cancer research — those priorities were typically additive; they didn’t restrict research in other areas. Trump’s approach “will have long-term harmful consequences,” said Matt Owens, president of the Council on Government Relations, an association of academic research institutions. “One of our strengths as a nation is the federal government has invested across the board in curiosity-driven research, because over time this pays dividends,” he told Chelsea. “So an erosion of broad federal support for all areas of research will damage our ability to remain the global science and innovation leader.” https://www.politico.com/newsletters/power-switch/2025/02/18/us-science-is-feeling-the-trump-chill-00204701
2/18/25: Trump takes ‘giant wrecking ball’ to US research (E&E News by Politico, COGR President Matt Owens quoted): “New administrations typically come in with their own new priorities for research, said Matt Owens, president of the Council on Government Relations, an association of academic research institutions. Previous administrations have championed everything from nanotechnology to cancer research to advanced manufacturing. But these priorities are typically additive, not aimed at restricting research in other areas, he said. The Trump administration is taking a different approach — one that “will have long-term harmful consequences,” Owens said. “One of our strengths as a nation is the federal government has invested across the board in curiosity-driven research, because over time this pays dividends,” he said. “So an erosion of broad federal support for all areas of research will damage our ability to remain the global science and innovation leader.” https://www.eenews.net/articles/trump-takes-giant-wrecking-ball-to-us-research/
2/10/25: A New Kind of Crisis for American Universities (The Atlantic, COGR 1991 Chart linked) ..whatever happens next, a jolt has already been administered to research universities, with immediate effects. And the sudden, savage cuts are setting up these institutions for more punishment to come. A 75-year tradition of academic research in America, one that made the nation’s schools the envy of the world , has been upset. https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2025/02/nih-trump-university-crisis/681634/
