[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 82 (Thursday, May 15, 2025)]
[House]
[Pages H2086-H2092]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
STOP TRUMP'S CHAOS--STAND UP FOR SCIENCE
(Under the Speaker's announced policy of January 3, 2025, Ms. Stevens
of Michigan was recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the
minority leader.)
Ms. STEVENS. Mr. Speaker, tonight I rise with my Democratic
colleagues, frankly, to call out the dangerous and draconian
antiscience agendas of this current administration. Since day one, this
administration has unleashed chaos on our national scientific
enterprise, undermining our Nation's competitiveness, our health
safety, and the dignity of research and how it is conducted. It is
coming at a time that will, frankly, move our country in the wrong
direction, and it will cost us.
In just over 100 days, we have seen the firing and rehiring of
experts, the illegal impounding of congressionally authorized and
appropriated research funding, and the future of our STEM student
pipeline jeopardized. Frankly, it has created a chilling effect across
our scientific research enterprise.
For the science enthusiasts watching at home, allow me to clarify
that, yes, we support our national scientific research enterprise, our
National Science Foundation, and our National Institute of Standards
and Technology.
In this country, we also have the National Institutes of Health. Some
of us are old enough to remember when we passed a DARPA for health
research, ARPA-H, Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health.
While much of my remarks will be dedicated toward our hard-nosed
scientific research funding, I do want to make mention of what it means
to have our health sciences under attack right now as well because
doctors and researchers, particularly in the medical fields, are
feeling extraordinary pain.
These aren't just talking points. This isn't just fear-mongering.
This is the cessation of scientific research, health research, special
projects dedicated toward combating cancer, pilot projects being
suddenly halted. It is a blow to patients. It is a blow to medical
researchers and physicians.
My colleagues tonight are going to join me in speaking about the
antiscience agenda that is in full swing in the United States of
America and what it means. Tonight, I am going to speak about Michigan.
I am going to speak about the harm of this chaos and the antiscience
agenda that it poses to the incredible State of Michigan.
The State of Michigan is known for its manufacturing prowess. Yes, we
have great healthcare institutions as well, but we are known as the
place that has put the world on wheels for our best-in-class workforce.
We are, of course, also known for the beauty of our Great Lakes. We are
known as a place that has the most number of first robotics teams in
the Nation. Also, that we are a hotbed and a place that people and
businesses come to to expand, to grow, and to tap into our engineering
talent.
{time} 1730
Mr. Speaker, you can't have a shop floor without research and
development. You can't have incredible manufacturing and incredible
innovation without scientific research and development.
It is about problem-solving. I know this from my time in the Obama
administration. I know this from my time working in a scientific
research lab. That innovation takes place on the shop floor and in the
heart of Michigan's manufacturing capabilities.
We are so proud of public-private partnerships. We are so proud of
how the government can provide seed funding through the National
Science Foundation and support for our National Institute of Standards
and Technology through the Manufacturing Extension Partnership Program.
[[Page H2087]]
My friend Mike Coast, the former leader of the Michigan Manufacturing
Technology Center, Michigan's MEP, and I are overdue for a
conversation. He is ringing the alarm bell about what these cuts will
do for Michigan and what this means.
From growing up and from my upbringing, I saw this story of what it
means to have a strong and vibrant manufacturing economy. It is
intertwined with the Nation's scientific research enterprise and
appropriated dollars.
I have visited my friends in over 250 unique small businesses, small
manufacturers, innovators, entrepreneurs, and training centers. The
innovation story is powered by Michigan's incredible workforce, our
hardworking men and women, and those large concentrations of engineers
that we have. They are from Grand Rapids, Flint, Saginaw, Lansing, and,
of course, all over southeast Michigan, from Detroit to Macomb County
and throughout Oakland County.
All of this goes hand in hand from the lab to the shop floor, to the
classroom, to the tinkering in the garage, or in Michigan--because we
do have those cold winters--in our basements. People are innovating,
designing, and doing.
I woke up on a Saturday morning to a headline that the National
Science Foundation is canceling more than 400 STEM grants. What does it
mean for Michigan? What does that mean for our schools that are not
fully funded? What does it mean when we are competing on the world
playing field?
We need to have these scientists. We need to have these
technologists. We need to have engineers and mathematicians. The
student pipeline is absolutely essential, Mr. Speaker.
Because of this Trump-Musk antiscience agenda undermining the
symbiotic relationship and threatening Michigan's future in advanced
manufacturing, environmental protection, and next-generation mobility
technologies--news flash, we had 40-plus new factories built and
developed in Michigan last year alone--the chaos continues to set us
back.
These aren't false threats. They are now a reality. It is blow after
blow. It is self-inflicted chaos at a time when we don't need it, when
it is not going to work for Michigan and not going to work for this
country.
Michigan is a national leader in public university research, with
nine public institutions in the great State of Michigan ranked as top-
tier universities. They are what we call R1 research universities. We
also have R2 universities. They all rank in that top nine.
This also includes Oakland University, which is located in my
district and where my parents met, and it is part of my origin story.
They have a very robust engineering department that relies on these
National Science Foundation grants, basic scientific research,
technology readiness 1 through 9.
What does that mean? We need to have basic scientific research. We
need to have the scientific method, of course, dictating and governing
how we conduct research in the United States of America.
University of Michigan and Michigan State University recently came
forward with what it would mean to see these grants and the
relationship between our universities and our government shrink.
I will hold this up. In fact, that was also in The Detroit News, that
the MSU president has spoken about the partnership between research
universities and innovation driven by government. We need these things.
At Wayne State University and Michigan Technological University, it
is the same thing. They conduct over 90 percent of the State's academic
research, totaling more than $3 billion. We want to compete. We want to
be a driver of the moonshot of this century.
Every day, Michiganders reap the benefits of these universities,
these small businesses, the entrepreneurs, and the small business
innovation research grants. I walk out my door, and people are
practically coming up to me, saying that this is where they want to
grow and go. The STEM talent is so mission critical to all of us.
Just the three largest research institutions created an economic
impact of nearly $24 billion for the State of Michigan. This is
personal for us, and this is very real. Our universities are where
tomorrow's breakthroughs are going to begin, breakthroughs that our
automakers are going to rely on, breakthroughs to compete in the global
marketplace, and also breakthroughs to win on the battlefield.
We are in a race for technological and, frankly, innovation
dominance. These cuts that have come through from the stroke of a pen
in the Oval Office have sincere, grave, and real results that are
harmful.
As a lawmaker, I choose to use my time to continue to craft the
legislation on quantum and on reauthorizing NSF and NIST that I am so
proud to see making its way through the Committee on Science. I hope
that my colleagues will join in to pass those bills.
Today, we use our voices to call out the harms of an antiscience
agenda, the setbacks it means for equity, the setbacks it means for
disadvantaged students, women, and students of color, and what this
means for our manufacturers that rely on the diversity of a fully
educated, skilled, and trained workforce, something that I see
happening every single day in my incredible home State.
It is that grit that Michiganders bring to everything that I know
will get us through, and it is with tremendous honor, Mr. Speaker, that
I sit and stand with my colleagues tonight as we speak out.
Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr.
Subramanyam), my incredible colleague, for tonight's Special Order. I
thank him for leading with me tonight.
Mr. SUBRAMANYAM. Mr. Speaker, I thank Congresswoman Stevens and all
the Members here today who stand up for science and innovation.
This is a matter of profound significance for many Americans. It is a
matter of life or death, whether they realize it or not.
It is the responsibility of this body to be stewards of our country's
future and leave this country better than how we found it. That means
recognizing the pivotal role of science and innovation for the people,
as well as the funding, and how it plays a role in making our country
great now and in the future.
Standing up for science is more important than ever right now because
the reality is this administration has declared a war on science with
DOGE, funding cuts, firing contractors, firing scientists and
innovators, and trying to chase others out.
For decades, America has been a leader in science and innovation, but
this leadership is not our country's birthright. It has been earned
over the years through an unwavering commitment to science and
innovation.
Make no mistake, our adversaries are watching closely the work we are
doing and everything that is happening right now. They want to
undermine and replace our leadership in science and innovation. We are
at risk of being outrun on AI, quantum, and so many other critical
technologies and innovations.
Instead of helping us maintain our global leadership, this
administration is slashing funding to our science agencies and firing
Federal scientists. The President is proposing a $4.9 billion cut to
the National Science Foundation. That is on top of over $1 billion in
grant funding that this administration has already terminated. At least
$100 million in grant funding was cut from universities just in my
State of Virginia alone.
Investments in science and innovation have fueled our economy and
started entire industries, given us healthcare breakthroughs, fortified
our national defense, and reinforced our leadership in the world.
Make no mistake, these firings and cuts to science and innovation
will hurt every single American. They will make us less safe, less
healthy, and less prosperous.
I have the honor of representing in northern Virginia one of the most
scientifically advanced communities in the country and many of the
folks who have been cut, fired, or have seen their funding subject to
these cuts. They have seen harassment, intimidation, and firings. They
are losing the ability to help Americans stay safe and healthy.
What is happening is that there is a brain drain of science and
technology innovators in our country because of these cuts. One of my
constituents is a graduate student in astrophysics. She
[[Page H2088]]
is pretty smart. Their research funding is at risk of being cut right
now. Folks like her are wondering whether they should stay in the
science field.
These cuts are destroying our Nation's pipeline of scientists,
technologists, and innovators.
A teacher from my district has been dismayed that the President plans
to cut the NASA budget by 24 percent. This will end educational
programs that get students excited about the sciences. Do we want to go
to Mars? Who is going to take us there? It is going to need the
ingenuity and expertise of the American people.
The cuts are not just limited to NASA and the National Science
Foundation. They are cutting healthcare research, as well.
A woman in my district said her son has a disease for which NIH was
researching a cure. Mr. Speaker, with recent cuts, you can kiss that
cure good-bye right now or any hope of her son getting that cure.
Right now, there are so many cuts that we are not solving the
problems in healthcare that we need to, to keep our country healthy.
For another woman, her son had congenital blindness, and NIH was
searching for a cure for that. That funding is on the chopping block,
as well, and also the people who are doing that research.
Another biomedical researcher in the district said it perfectly when
he said that the NIH, FDA, CDC, and NSF are making discoveries now that
will be the foundation for solutions needed in the years and decades
ahead.
We won't even know what we missed with some of these cuts. We won't
know what innovations we could have made but for these cuts.
I want to end by saying that I am pretty sure these firings and cuts
to science and research aren't about waste, fraud, and abuse or
government efficiency. If they were and if this administration actually
cared about efficiency, they would know that funding to science,
technology, and innovation doubles or triples the investment back in
economic activity, not to mention all the lives that research saves and
all the people who are kept healthy and safe by this research.
This does not have to be partisan. This does not have to be
controversial in any way. Mr. Speaker, I call on all of my colleagues
on both sides of the aisle to stand up for science, research, and
innovation because standing up for science means standing up for the
health, safety, and prosperity of every American.
Ms. STEVENS. Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Subramanyam, a new freshman
member on the Committee on Science and Member of this very body. As we
can tell, he is already leading in an extraordinary way.
Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Beyer), who
is well past his freshman term but also from the Commonwealth of
Virginia.
Mr. BEYER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for putting this
together. I really appreciate it.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong opposition to the Trump
administration's attack on our scientific workforce and on science,
specifically at the National Science Foundation, located a few blocks
from my home.
Today, my colleagues and I introduced a resolution commemorating the
75th anniversary of the National Science Foundation. We should be
enormously proud to support the work of the NSF.
Since 1950, the National Science Foundation has helped the U.S. lead
the world in science. It supported the research and key investments
that helped catalyze the internet, advanced technology for MRI
machines, 3D printing, and artificial intelligence.
It created American Sign Language, detected gravitational waves that
developed LASIK eye surgery, and much, much more.
It has been a cornerstone of our scientific education in the United
States, providing support from elementary and prekindergarten right
through the Ph.D. level.
NSF's prestigious awards draw researchers from across the world to
come to the United States to do their work and to study. Best for us,
they often stay.
The same incredible talent is under attack by this President, who is
not only recklessly removing our best scientists from the Federal
workforce but also defunding science and the scientific research at our
Nation's premier institutions. These are exactly the people who create
America's future.
In his skinny budget request, the President proposed a $5 billion cut
to the National Science Foundation, including $1 billion in STEM
education and workforce programs. If that budget request is enacted by
Congress, this will be a death knell for our innovation economy and for
America's future.
{time} 1745
I have already been alarmed by the workforce cuts the Trump
administration has made over the past months. We are losing our best
and our brightest. Some might find jobs in the private sector, but many
are likely to be poached by other countries. We hear again and again
that many countries are trying to recruit our best and brightest.
I know this personally because these cuts have heavily impacted my
home. I have had hundreds of constituents, thousands, fired or coerced
out of the Federal workforce by the toxic environment that DOGE is
intentionally creating. These are professionals who have dedicated
their talent, their lives, and their scientific expertise to ensure
that the National Science Foundation is advancing the most cutting-
edge, innovative research proposals.
Mr. Speaker, the last thing we should be doing is losing that talent.
I am also deeply alarmed at canceled grants and funding at NSF and
our scientific agencies.
The Trump administration has cut more than $1 billion in awards this
year. Many of these grants were terminated for no reason by the
administration. One particularly egregious example was an award on
improving the effectiveness of teaching students how to do computer
science. Really?
At a time when we need to increase our domestic AI and STEM focused
workforce, we need students to be familiar with the artificial
intelligence systems of tomorrow, so that they can contribute to our
continued leadership in tech.
Mr. Speaker, I keep looking for examples in history on this retreat
from knowledge. There were England's Luddites in the early 19th century
who fought the use of new textile technology. There was Mao Zedong's
Cultural Revolution 1966 through 1976 when intellectuals and scientists
were labeled the ``Stinking Old Ninth'' and were sent to reeducation
camps in the countryside.
For 75 years, the National Science Foundation has kept the U.S. at
the forefront of science and has made us the envy of the world.
The NSF can claim 268 Nobel Prize winners. Yet now we have a
President and an administration that is antiscience and antiprogress.
Just as we have made investments in projects that are pivotal in
artificial intelligence, quantum, and other leading areas at NIH, NOAA,
NASA, the CDC, EPA, and, tragically, the National Science Foundation,
now is not the time that we stop investing in our future. This is what
the Trump administration is doing.
I join my colleagues today to stand up for science, to oppose the
administration's attacks on the National Science Foundation, and to
fiercely champion our investment in science and knowledge for
generations to come.
Ms. STEVENS. Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Beyer for his great leadership
in Congress and for his continued dedication to education as he is
getting a degree in artificial intelligence.
Mr. Speaker, we also have another very well-degreed Member of
Congress, Dr. Bill Foster, whom I have been so proud to serve alongside
for many years in this Chamber and, of course, for many years on the
Science Committee where we have passed a lot of bills together.
Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Foster).
Mr. FOSTER. Mr. Speaker, I thank Congresswoman Stevens and
Congressman Subramanyam for organizing this on such an important topic.
As Congress' sole Ph.D. physicist, I spent 25 years of my life,
before coming to Congress, working at the Department of Energy Office
of Science supported laboratory. We were smashing protons and
antiprotons together to make particles that have not been around since
the big bang. I am proud to have been on the team that discovered the
top quark, the heaviest known
[[Page H2089]]
form of matter. We worked with scientists from all over the world who
came to America because we had the best equipment, the best
experiments, and the best scientists, and they wanted to collaborate.
All of this is at risk.
Amidst the Republican assault on science, I am going to focus my
remarks tonight mainly on the NSF.
On May 10, we celebrated the 75th anniversary of the National Science
Foundation. Today, together with my fellow Representatives Don Beyer,
Dr. Scott Franklin, and Haley Stevens, we introduced a House resolution
to celebrate that anniversary.
The resolution highlights the importance of the NSF for our Nation's
research enterprise and the workforce it supports, totaling roughly
350,000 students, teachers, scientists, entrepreneurs, and researchers,
including 268 Nobel Prize winners to date.
The NSF is a cornerstone of American innovation and is foundational
for continuing basic research discoveries. We hope this work continues
for many decades to come.
Support for Federal science agencies like the NSF have led to new and
unexpected research directions that would not have been possible
without Federal funding.
That is why it is important that we recognize the role that NSF-
funded basic research plays in the discoveries driving the next
generation of science.
This includes funding for AI, for cybersecurity, for supercomputers,
fusion energy, space, ocean exploration, black holes, semiconductors,
and, last but not least, the internet.
In addition to basic research, the NSF also funds many educational
programs supporting the next generation of scientists. Perhaps in the
fullness of time that is its most crucial mission because it enables
the careers to move forward in science of these young people who have
shared my fascination with science.
Over the past 75 years, the NSF has stayed true to its mission to
promote the progress of science; to advance the national health,
prosperity, and welfare; and to secure the national defense.
Underpinning this has been its commitment to a merit-based and peer-
reviewed grant process that has ensured that good science is
consistently prioritized and free from political interference.
The NSF has had an exemplary 75 years, and I look forward to its
progress in the next 75.
So, how are Republicans celebrating this anniversary?
By slashing the budget by a factor of two and muzzling the science.
Unfortunately, the Trump administration has failed to see the
importance of this Federal investment in science for our country's
future.
The President's fiscal year 2026 budget proposes cutting the NSF
budget by 55 percent, including fundamental research, education, and
broadening participation efforts.
Other agencies have been impacted by the funding cuts, including NIH
by 37 percent, NOAA by 24 percent, the EPA by 54 percent, NASA's
science arm by 46 percent, and the Department of Energy Office of
Science by 14 percent, among many others.
Long term, these cuts will have detrimental impacts on scientific and
technological innovation and cause irreparable damage to our global
competitiveness. So this discussion could not come at a more important
time.
As a result of Trump's directives, all grant funding at the NSF is
now halted, and the existing grants are under review for termination.
I led over 100 of my fellow Members in a letter to the administration
opposing this unconstitutional grant freeze, which is in direct
opposition to Congress' appropriations.
This measure comes after canceling over 1,000 NSF active research
grants last month, with another 344 more grants canceled recently in
the third consecutive round of Friday terminations.
Why Friday?
It is because Friday traditionally is the time that they reveal
actions that they are ashamed of. I wonder why they put it on Friday.
In addition to freezing all grants at the NSF, the agency instituted
a 15 percent cap on indirect cost rates for colleges and universities
where many of our future scientists receive training and participate in
research experiences early in life that spark their curiosity.
Many of these grants across many agencies are impacting STEM
education across the career pipeline. In addition to stopping research
discoveries, these cuts will lead to the loss of STEM talent, which
places the United States at a permanent competitive disadvantage.
President Trump's budget also proposes eliminating NASA's Office of
STEM Engagement, which will significantly deter young talent from
participating in STEM programming and impair our Nation's ability to
lead in scientific fields.
In another Republican assault on STEM education, which seems to be a
theme of their cuts, at the U.S. Geological Survey, the Federal hiring
freeze led to the termination of a summer internship program for
undergraduate students. The National Association of Geoscience
Teachers-USGS Cooperative Summer Fellowship program had been running
since 1965, matching undergraduate students with mentors and projects
at the agency.
Through this program, talented student interns benefit from working
with well-established scientists and gain valuable research experience
at a well-known science agency. This experience can spark their
curiosity in science and may set them up for long-term research
careers, assuming, of course, the budget is not slashed there as well.
Altogether, since 1965, around 3,000 interns have contributed to
scientific projects in research areas of importance to USGS and NAGT to
promote high-quality Earth education.
Programs like this allow students to contribute to our country's
scientific achievements, energy resource development, and economic
prosperity. However, this year, 39 promising young geoscientists will
not have this opportunity.
So what does this mean for the scientific workforce?
The recent departure of the NSF Director Sethuraman Panchanathan,
known to all of us as ``Dr. Panch,'' from the NSF was a really notable
negative milestone for this administration's actions.
It is a significant loss when we lose such dedicated and talented
public servants. They are leaving the Federal Government workforce not
as happy campers, and everybody knows it.
This follows workers like Dr. Peter Marks, who is one of the heroes
of Operation Warp Speed and one of the lead scientists at the FDA.
There are hundreds of others, unfortunately, following in their
footsteps.
To shed light on this issue, for example, this last March, together
with my colleague, Don Beyer, I led 37 House Members in a letter to
the Trump administration expressing our strong support for the agency
and grave concerns with the firing of 168 workers at the NSF.
Unfortunately, the DOGEs in the Trump administration have ignored
this sort of appeal completely.
This letter highlighted the importance of NSF funding to our
country's leadership in cancer research, energy, artificial
intelligence, and quantum computing. None of this work would be
possible without program managers and experts who play central roles in
grant funding decisions at the agency.
A negative consequence of these actions for our country is that we
will not only miss out on scientific breakthroughs that drive our
country forward, but lose an entire generation of scientists who cannot
complete their NSF-supported training and will abandon research careers
altogether, or perhaps, as was mentioned, simply depart for countries
abroad.
So I want to assure NSF-funded researchers and staff that we are on
their side, and we are supporting them. They should keep coming to
Congress to tell us about the direct impacts, and that goes for
scientists in all fields throughout this country.
It is our duty to ensure that, regardless of the political climate,
science remains at the forefront of our Nation's progress and
innovation.
So, Mr. Speaker, I urge my sensible colleagues on both sides of the
aisle to support efforts that increase the resiliency of our Federal
science agencies in the face of these growing threats from the
administration, and to continue supporting the U.S. research workforce.
Congratulations, again, to the NSF on celebrating 75 years. We will
continue to fight for the agency's viability
[[Page H2090]]
and for our Nation's competitiveness by supporting all of our Federal
science agencies.
Ms. STEVENS. Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Foster for his always wise and
important words.
Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from California (Mr.
Whitesides), who is a leader in the field of science and space
exploration.
Mr. WHITESIDES. Mr. Speaker, I thank Congresswoman Stevens for
yielding.
Mr. Speaker, my name is George Whitesides, and I represent
California's 27th Congressional District.
Before I was a Member of Congress, I served as the Chief of Staff of
NASA and later as the CEO of an aerospace company that created hundreds
of well-paying jobs in the Antelope Valley. I have a degree in remote
sensing with GIS. I grew up in a science family. My dad is a chemist
and a professor. I have worked on new and innovative ways to tackle our
wildfire crisis, a growing threat that the people I represent know all
too well.
I know from firsthand experience that the United States is home to
the smartest, most hardworking, and most impressive minds of our time
who have dedicated their lives to helping families across the country
fight deadly diseases, predict and prevent natural disasters before
they hit, and mount a challenge against our foreign rivals like China.
However, we can't continue this important work without our scientific
institutions.
Recently, our biggest scientific agencies have come under a full-
scale attack with the administration's proposed budget effectively
annihilating the very science that keeps us safe. Programs that
previously had broad, bipartisan support, such as the Army Corps of
Engineers water infrastructure fund, EPA's drinking water and clean
water funds for States, forestry operations, energy utility assistance
for low-income households, science and technology programs, and
agricultural support are all on the chopping block.
At NASA, satellites that allow us to understand weather patterns,
monitor our changing climate, and track fires as they move and spread
are at risk of being deorbited. Employees in my home district who work
at NASA Armstrong and JPL have no idea what their futures hold.
NOAA, an organization that helps families across the country prepare
for natural disasters like hurricanes and tornadoes, is being gutted
from the ground up.
The NIH, which works on groundbreaking cures for diseases like
cancer, Alzheimer's, and heart disease, has supplied significantly
fewer grants and awards to scientists than in previous administrations,
effectively halting our work on critical medical advances.
{time} 1800
From February to April, the administration terminated nearly 700
grants across 24 NIH institutes and centers focused on subjects such as
aging, cancer, child health, diabetes, mental health, and neurological
disorders.
We are not only losing the promise of progress and cures and climate
technology, we are losing critical data that allow us to better
understand the world we live in and respond to growing threats that we
face, both foreign and domestic.
That is why today I led my colleagues with similar scientific
backgrounds to let the administration know exactly what will happen to
our Nation if they gut these science agencies. A letter was sent to the
President drawing on our diverse backgrounds and constituencies to let
him know exactly why science is a good investment for the future of our
children and for our country.
Make no mistake, we can always be better and more efficient, and
these are ideals that we should all strive for. These are ideals that
Americans fairly demand from their government, and we should all be
working toward that challenge.
When I helped lead NASA for President Obama, we constantly iterated
and improved our existing systems because we knew how important it was
to stretch the taxpayer dollar as far as it can go.
Taking a sledgehammer and a chain saw to entire institutions that
allow us to stay safe and also remain competitive on the global scale
is not only unwise, it is dangerous.
The bottom line is that science is an incredible investment for jobs
today and for the future of our country.
I am going to keep fighting for the families across my district who
need NASA satellites to know if their houses are going to be safe from
fires, for seniors who need medical advancements to live long and
healthy lives, and for red States and blue States that will be hit by
tornadoes and hurricanes in the months and years to come.
I am here to stand up for families in my district and across the
country who will be less safe and more at risk as a result of these
cuts. I am here as an innovator and entrepreneur to stand up for
science.
Ms. STEVENS. Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Whitesides for his comments.
How lucky the people of California are to have his representation and
how lucky the United States Congress is to have his expertise.
Mr. Speaker, I yield now to Mrs. Foushee of North Carolina, another
proven expert, leader and fighter, and ranking member on the Science,
Space, and Technology Committee.
Ms. FOUSHEE. Mr. Speaker, I thank my esteemed colleagues for
organizing this Special Order hour.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in solidarity with my colleagues to stand up and
speak out against the proposed budget and demonization of science and
the science community.
America is where we are today because of what we create. Whether it
is manufacturing, innovation, scientific and medical research, or
technology transfer, all these fields require science and the millions
of researchers and innovators who push American STEM in our Nation's
workforce to the forefront.
These efforts are critical to my district, which includes the
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Duke University, North
Carolina Central University, Durham and Wake Technical Community
Colleges, and so many new up-and-coming industry leaders in STEM.
However, in total, the Trump administration has canceled nearly $20
million in NSF research grants to North Carolina as a whole.
Take, for instance, an NSF-funded grant that was recently canceled in
my district, North Carolina's Fourth, that was aimed at addressing the
lack of diversity in the engineering doctoral workforce and promoting
the retention of students from underrepresented groups.
Recent doctoral engineering attrition rates revealed a
disproportionately high loss of students from groups historically
underrepresented in STEM, like women, minorities, and people from rural
areas.
Researchers in my district were working to help us address this
critical gap, funded by NSF, now canceled under the guise of being so-
called woke.
Still, the majority continues to conflate the need to bolster
manufacturing with the destruction of our scientific institutions.
We need to make things here at home. Does America really win if China
does all the innovation?
I like the idea of an America that supports domestic manufacturing
and is a leader in innovation, not an America that does China's
manufacturing work.
Right now, because of the senseless cuts to NSF, NIH, and scientific
institutions across the board, we are, instead, taking steps toward
losing a generation of innovators and helping China lead global STEM
innovation, not us.
Ms. STEVENS. Mr. Speaker, I thank Congresswoman Foushee for her
ongoing leadership for women in the sciences and for HBCUs that are
also so important to our STEM scientific research enterprise.
Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to pass the floor over to the congresswoman
from New Mexico (Ms. Stansbury).
Ms. STANSBURY. Mr. Speaker, Donald Trump's war on science is putting
our country and our economy in peril. From haphazard firings of Federal
workers who work on nuclear security and keep our food and medicine
safe to firefighters and healthcare workers, I am here to say enough is
enough.
As a proud woman in STEM and a bona fide science nerd, I cannot sit
quietly as this administration jeopardizes the scientific advancement
of this country.
[[Page H2091]]
That is why I am here to say enough; enough of the lies about Project
2025 and its antiscience agenda; enough with the dismantling of the
National Institutes of Health, the Centers for Disease Control, and the
National Science Foundation; enough with canceling grants for medical
research and STEM programs that ensure our country stays safe and
globally competitive; enough with pedaling disinformation that
jeopardizes the health and well-being of millions of Americans; and
enough with hiring unqualified pundits, influencers, and political
loyalists who pedal conspiracy theories and openly admit that no one
should rely on them for advice. Mr. Speaker, everyone knows who I mean.
America is a leader in science and technology. We were the first in
the world to send a man to the moon. We invented the polio vaccine and
DNA sequencing. We invented the microchip, the internet, and GPS.
Americans invented the airplane, the lightbulb, television, and email,
and we fed the world with our innovations in food and agriculture.
Over the last 3\1/2\ months, we have seen an unprecedented attack on
our Nation's science and technology, programs gutted, projects halted,
and the world's leading scientists and engineers fired for no reason. A
budget delivered to Congress just a couple of weeks ago by the
President that would cut over a billion dollars in science, education,
and workforce programs. A budget that would slash 30 percent of NOAA's
budget, and strip the Environmental Protection Agency of more than half
of its funding.
That is why nearly 2,000 doctors, scientists, and researchers have
called this administration a wholesale assault on United States science
that threatens the country's health, national security, and economic
development.
Congress, the courts, and our communities are fighting back,
conducting oversight, voting no, showing up to agencies, supporting
cases across the Federal court system, and, yes, getting loud in the
streets to stand with science.
Democrats stand with our scientists, our engineers, our innovators,
and our healthcare workers. Democrats stand with our Federal science
and healthcare agencies. Democrats stand with the people of this
country who depend on that science and who depend on that innovation to
keep us safe and fuel our economy because that is all of us.
I say to my fellow leaders in STEM, stay strong, stay in the fight.
Democrats are fighting with you, and we will win.
Ms. STEVENS. Mr. Speaker, I thank our science nerds and enthusiasts
for their work, just as Ms. Stansbury so nicely laid out.
Mr. Speaker, I yield the floor to the gentleman from New York (Mr.
Tonko), another great warrior for scientific research and funding and
support for the manufacturing economy of this country and a leader in
the Congress.
Mr. TONKO. Mr. Speaker, I thank Representative Stevens for the kind
introduction. I thank Representative Subramanyam for cohosting this
showcasing of supporters of science and tech in our economy and the
investments that we can make in our government.
No nation can maintain its leadership status in the world without
investments made and attention paid to science, to science technology,
engineering, and math.
It is essential that we grow that population of scientists, of
engineers who can then provide for the muscle of our innovation
economy, to allow for that intellectual capacity of this great Nation
and the pioneer spirit of this Nation to continue to foster this growth
of product delivery that speaks to the quality of life of people across
this great world.
We as a nation have been a leader. I think back to the humble
beginnings of this Nation. In the 1800s, there was a development of the
Erie Canal in upstate New York that is still looked to as perhaps the
first tech corridor.
The eastern mouth of that Erie Canal is included in the geography
that I serve in New York's 20th Congressional District, in the greater
capital region. Along that canal, we not only provided for a great
connection of a great ocean, the Atlantic, with the Great Lakes that
inspired a westward movement into the midland of our country, into the
States that border the Great Lakes.
With that came the development of a necklace of communities dubbed
``mill towns'' that became the epicenters of invention and innovation,
that inspired all sort of product delivery and responses to the needs
of this world, and impacted favorably not only the quality of life in
our United States but in nations around the world.
That whole history, that powerful statement of what can be created
when we invest in our manufacturing, in our technology, in our science
community is proof that we need to continue forward in that vein.
Since January, Donald Trump and his political allies have launched a
full-scale assault on America's scientific enterprise. Federal
investments in science power nearly every aspect of our modern life,
medical breakthroughs, clean air and water, accurate weather forecasts,
safe food, and real solutions to the climate crisis.
This administration has made their position painfully clear. They
simple many don't care. Instead, they are injecting partisan politics
into research, censoring scientists, punishing experts, and pulling
funding from projects that challenge their narrow ideology. They don't
care about protecting communities from the climate disaster, and we are
going to continue to write checks for disaster aid if we continue this
ignoring of climate change.
They don't care about preventing the next pandemic. We have learned
that science became very much focused upon during the whole COVID
crisis. They don't care about making STEM more inclusive, and they
certainly don't care if Americans suffer as a result.
This isn't just wrong, it is a blatant attack on scientific
integrity. Integrity in research is essential, essential to scientific
excellence and to maintaining the public's trust.
That is why, as an engineer and lifelong advocate for science, I have
made it one of my top priorities in Congress to right the ship of
American science policy.
As part of that effort, I am indeed proud to lead the bipartisan
Scientific Integrity Act. Tomorrow, we will be the launching of the
Scientific Integrity Task Force to continue the fight to protect
science from political interference.
{time} 1815
Hands off science. Let that pure product of research get delivered to
those decisionmakers, those policymakers, and let us determine what
those findings mean in terms of the need for additional policy and
research advocacy. Let us do it in the purest sense.
New York's 20th Congressional District has felt the effects of these
attacks firsthand. Over $715 million in National Science Foundation
grants have been terminated in New York's 20th Congressional District
alone, including a $1 million award to the University at Albany's
Project SAGES.
Project SAGES was created to confront one of the deepest, most
persistent inequities in science, and that is the underrepresentation
of women, especially women of color, in faculty positions. This was
peer-reviewed, data-driven, mission-critical science, and we need to
make certain that we continue to build upon that.
Cutting this program sends a clear message to a generation of
researchers: You don't belong.
It doesn't stop there. Another canceled UAlbany NSF grant supported a
collaborative study to improve public understanding of population
science, especially around climate change, racial justice, and the rise
of misinformation. The goal was to equip students in communities with
tools to recognize and challenge the misuse of demographic data, data
increasingly weaponized to justify political extremism and division.
Does that sound familiar? You bet it does.
SUNY campuses, the State University of New York campuses, across the
State lost almost $2.5 million in NSF support for programs helping
students of color succeed in STEM through research opportunities,
mentorships, and academic support. These students are the future of a
diverse and dynamic scientific workforce, and this administration
slammed the door in their faces.
Let's be clear. These cuts are not about efficiency. They are not
about
[[Page H2092]]
fiscal responsibility. They are rooted in racist, sexist, and
authoritarian ideology.
I will not stay silent while extremists attack our scientists, our
students, our universities, and our future.
We are woefully underproducing scientists and engineers in our
society. You can look at the growth of those communities in other
nations, other continents. This country is woefully underproducing. We
do not have the luxury of walking away from any one demographic of
students out there based on gender, race, or ethnicity to meet our
goals. We cannot skip over any of those populations.
We must stand up--stand up for science, stand up for equity, and
stand up for the truth.
Ms. STEVENS. Madam Speaker, I thank Mr. Tonko for his years of
leadership on the Scientific Integrity Act, still very essential
legislation for this country.
What a profound honor it is to be with colleagues in this democracy
sharing these views.
Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from California (Mr. Takano).
Mr. TAKANO. Madam Speaker, I thank my colleagues, Ms. Stevens and Mr.
Subramanyam, for hosting this Special Order hour. Their leadership is
much needed, and I appreciate them.
Madam Speaker, I rise today because something is deeply wrong. The
Trump administration is gutting our Nation's scientific infrastructure
and doing it with purpose. This isn't some misunderstanding or clerical
error. It is an attack on research, on truth, and on the people who
have dedicated their lives to making our country stronger, smarter, and
healthier.
Thousands of scientists have been laid off. Grants approved by
Congress are being withheld. Whole labs are shutting down. Now, the
administration wants to slash funding for the NIH, the CDC, the
Department of Energy's labs, and the university partnerships that have
built the modern American economy.
They call this reform. It is not reform. It is a dagger to the heart
of American innovation.
Let's be honest about what's going on here. Elon Musk and the so-
called Department of Government Efficiency are using the Federal
Government to settle scores: cancer trials, nonessential; national
science databases, too expensive. That is not policy. It is a crusade
against expertise.
Last month, I sat down with five undergraduate researchers at UC
Riverside. They are doing remarkable work on everything from climate
change to biomedical engineering. Their students are bright; their
ideas are bold; and their funding is suddenly at risk, not because the
science failed but because politics did.
While we fire researchers, other countries are sending job offers.
France, Germany, Canada, and Australia are rolling out the red carpet
for the scientists we are pushing out the door.
While we make it harder for international students, researchers, and
the greatest minds around the world to come, to bring their talent,
other countries are offering funding, housing, and guaranteed lab
space.
One institute called it a ``once-in-a-century brain gain
opportunity,'' a once-in-a-century brain gain opportunity for other
countries. This is what it looks like when a country values science.
Meanwhile, we are bleeding talent.
As ranking member of the House Veterans' Affairs Committee, I need to
speak plainly: Our veterans are being hurt, too.
In Pennsylvania, doctors at VA hospitals warned that lifesaving
cancer trials were being shut down. I was told by the Secretary--I
rushed from that hearing--that they really weren't being shut down, but
there are a lot of questions around the status of these trials.
More than 1,000 veterans are at risk of losing access to treatments
for head and neck cancer, kidney disease, and traumatic brain injuries.
Some of these trials have not been restarted.
In Pittsburgh, a study for veterans struggling with opioid addiction
stalled out when a hiring freeze hit.
In Los Angeles, all chemotherapy treatments almost stopped entirely
before the VA reversed course.
These are not just numbers. These are people. These are veterans who
stepped up for this country, who are now wondering why the country will
not step up for them.
We passed the PACT Act to expand care to those exposed to burn pits
and other toxins. It was the largest expansion of veterans' care in
generations, making good on a promise to help those who served our
Nation. Now, it is being broken.
While all of this is happening, China is investing billions in
biotech, AI, and clean energy. They are not just competing with us;
they are outpacing us because they are not undermining their own
scientists.
While we fire, they fund. While we second-guess researchers, they
fast-track them.
We are not losing this race because we Americans are not capable. We
are losing because we are allowing our government to sabotage them.
Today, some of the National Science Foundation scientists who were
fired may be watching from the gallery, others--grad students, post-
docs, public health experts--are tuning in from their labs and
classrooms across the country.
To all of them, I say this: We see you. We value you. We are not
giving up on you. This is not about science; it is about who we are as
a country.
Do we invest in the people solving cancer, or do we dismiss them as
expendable?
Do we stand by our veterans mid-treatment, or do we tell them to wait
until the budget looks better?
Do we fight to stay at the forefront of discovery and innovation, or
do we hand the future to someone else?
Madam Speaker, I represent a region full of young people who believe
they can cure disease, fight climate change, and explore the stars.
What message are we sending them right now?
We should be investing in their future, not pulling the rug out from
underneath them.
Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to reject these cuts, reject this
anti-science, anti-veteran agenda. Let us fight for the truth for our
researchers, for our vets, and for the country we still have a chance
to become.
Ms. STEVENS. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Virginia
(Mr. Subramanyam) to close us out. He is such a leader, and I am so
proud of him for helping with this Special Order hour.
Mr. SUBRAMANYAM. Madam Speaker, I thank Congresswoman Stevens for
yielding, and I will keep it very short.
A study a few weeks ago said that a 25 percent reduction in public
support of science and research would correlate to a 3.8 percent drop
in economic output. That is the same as the Great Recession. That is
how bad it would be.
Protecting science funding is not just about labs or some agencies.
It is about preserving hope for families across the country. These cuts
are bad for our economy, small businesses, parents, children, teachers,
patients, you name it. Our country cannot afford these massive cuts to
science and innovation.
We must reject these cuts and stand up for the health, safety, and
prosperity of every American.
Ms. STEVENS. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for his remarks.
We will continue to use our voices. To every scientific researcher,
science student, and American wondering, we have your back. We will use
our voices. We will not be silent in the face of these cuts.
Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
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