White House moves to give political appointees more power over federal grants

NEW YORK (AP) — President Donald Trump's administration on Friday moved to give political appointees more power over the billions of dollars in grants awarded by federal agencies, a move scientists say puts critical research funding into the hands of partisans without relevant expertise.

In what would be the most sweeping change to the federal grantmaking process in years, the proposed regulations would require senior appointees to review funding to see if it complies with the law and the president's priorities.

The rules would also give administration officials more freedom to terminate grants that have already been awarded, a process that could jeopardize millions of dollars in ongoing research.

The Office of Management and Budget, which issued the more than 400-page proposal, said President Joe Biden's administration allowed a lack of transparency, accountability and oversight in the federal grant process that led to “woke” programs receiving federal funding.

“Collectively, these policies wasted a great amount of taxpayer resources and caused great harm to public trust in government,” the document reads. “The proposed reforms are necessary to ensure greater accountability for use of public funds.”

After a public comment period, OMB and federal agencies will decide whether to revise the proposal before finalizing it as soon as this summer.

Scientists have said the move will cripple the scientific engine that has made America the world's leader in research and development by giving control over federal research funds to people who are influenced by politics. They've raised concerns the changes will delay grant review and approval, slowing scientific progress and medical breakthroughs.

Friday’s proposal fulfills an executive order issued by President Donald Trump last summer. Throughout the president's second term, his administration has been terminating research grants on topics that the president deems inappropriate for study, including transgender health and diversity, equity and inclusion.

The LGBTQ+ advocacy group the Human Rights Campaign slammed the Trump administration’s draft regulations, saying they would strip money from any program that acknowledges diversity, abortion or the existence of transgender and nonbinary people.

“Withholding public grants from programs that depend on them because you refuse to acknowledge the humanity of certain communities is not good government - it’s fascism,” said spokesperson Laurel Powell. “We will fight back.”

President Donald Trump speaks during the 158th National Memorial Day Observance coinciding with the nation's 250th anniversary, at the Memorial Amphitheater in Arlington National Cemetery, Monday, May 25, 2026, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

President Donald Trump listens during a Cabinet meeting at the White House, Wednesday, May 27, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

SAO PAULO (AP) — A court in the northern Brazilian state of Pará has ruled that both federal and local officials must act to restore and preserve Fordlandia, a city established nearly a century ago by U.S. industrialist Henry Ford deep in the Amazon rainforest.

Prosecutors said Friday that the decision marks a significant milestone in heritage protection.

Fordlandia, now a ghost town and a district of the city of Aveiro, was built in 1927 in Pará by the Ford Motor Co. as a rubber-tapping metropolis intended to secure a steady supply of natural rubber for tires.

Designed to resemble an idyllic American suburb, it was once the third-largest settlement in the Amazon region. However, disease ravaged the rubber tree plantations, leading to the city’s abandonment. In 1945, the Brazilian government acquired the site.

In 2015, Brazil’s federal prosecutors’ office in Pará sued the country’s Iphan architectural heritage agency and the city of Aveiro for failing to preserve Fordlandia. They also demanded that authorities grant the city protected status.

“Fordlandia is a landmark chapter in the history of Brazil and of global industry. The project was an American effort to challenge the British monopoly on rubber, bringing cutting-edge infrastructure—including a hospital, running water, electricity and a movie theater — to the heart of the Amazon in the 1920s,” the prosecutors’ office in Pará said in a statement.

Despite the end of the commercial venture, officials emphasized that the district remains an important part of Brazil’s national memory and should be preserved for future generations.

Two weeks ago, a judge in Pará ordered both federal and local authorities to restore Fordlandia. The decision came after more than a decade of legal proceedings.

Although the district isn't officially recognized as a heritage site, the court found that it possesses historical, cultural, and architectural significance, which the Brazilian Constitution mandates must be protected.

The ruling further requires the government and municipality to develop and implement a recovery plan for the district, with potential financial penalties for noncompliance.

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This photo provided by the Brazilian Federal Justice shows a building in Fordlandia, Para, Brazil, Dec. 6, 2021. (Ianara Duarte/Brazilian Federal Justice via AP)

This photo provided by the Brazilian Federal Justice shows a truck driving past buildings in Fordlandia, Para, Brazil, Dec. 6, 2021. (Ianara Duarte/Brazilian Federal Justice via AP)