Trump Fires National Science Board, Halts Science Leadership

0:00It's April 28th, I'm Cory with the story, this is El Paso News today, driven by AI. The Trump administration just fired every member of the National Science Board, the group that oversees the National Science Foundation. All 25 scientists got termination emails effective immediately, coming straight from the Presidential Personnel Office on behalf of President Trump. This board advises the President and Congress on science and engineering policy, approves big funding deals and sets the NSF's direction. It was created back in 1950, with members serving staggered six-year terms from academia and industry experts in fields like astronomy, math, chemistry, and aerospace. One local name stands out, University of Texas at El Paso, President Heather Wilson, who Trump himself appointed in March 2020. Her term was due to end May 10th, and she'd already served as his Air Force Secretary. The whole board was prepped for an in-person meeting next week to finalize a key report on the state of U.S. science.

1:01Fired member Yolanda Gill confirmed, everyone got the boot, no exceptions. The move halts their immediate work, including that report, sparking questions on science leadership. You tech deferred comments to the White House, leaving the future of this oversight body up in the air as replacements get sorted.