Trump Administration Fires Science Board, Threatens NSF Funding

0:00It's April 28th. Welcome to Global News Today, powered by AI, I'm Cory with the story. The Trump administration just fired every single member of the National Science Board, the independent group that oversees the National Science, Found Eagle. They got an email Friday from the Presidential Personnel Office on behalf of President Donald J. Trump, saying their positions ended immediately. That's all 22 current members out the door. This board, created back in 1950, advises the President and Congress on science and engineering policies, green lights, major funding grants, and shapes the foundation's direction. Members usually serve staggered six-year terms, and these folks came from universities and industry, experts and fields like astronomy, math, chemistry, and aerospace engineering. Reactions poured in quick. One fired member from Vanderbilt University called it, hugely disappointing, but not a total shock. Another from USC saw it as a sign of radical overhalls coming for the foundation.

1:01Top Democrat on the Senate Commerce Committee, Maria Cantwell, slammed it as a dangerous hit on the expertise driving American innovation. Adding to the tension, the administration tried slashing the foundation's $9 billion budget in half last year, but Congress held firm. Now similar cuts are on the table again, and without this board in the way, experts worry it will be easier to push through, gutting basic research and training for future scientists. Meanwhile, the foundation's headquarters got shuffled to a smaller spot, with their old digs handed to housing and urban development. As this shakes out, it raises big questions about where US science funding heads next.