How the Trump
administration has harmed public health and safety in its first six months
Union of Concerned Scientists
Since President Trump took office in January 2017, his
administration (aided and abetted by Congress) has waged a war on
science—undermining the role of science in public policy, giving industry undue
influence on decision-making processes, creating a hostile environment for
federal scientists, and reducing public access to scientific information.
This pattern of anti-science actions threatens the health and
safety of the American people, with the greatest impacts likely to fall on the
nation's most vulnerable populations.
The science community and the general
public have responded to this threat with vigorous resistance, and we must
continue to stand up for science if we are to
prevent the worst potential consequences of the Trump administration's actions.
These are the findings of a new UCS report, Sidelining
Science from Day One, that details dozens of cases where science has been
ignored, denied, distorted, silenced, or hidden from public view over the
administration's first six months.
Political interference in government science is not new.
Previous administrations and their allies have engaged in many of the same
kinds of attacks the report identifies. But under the Trump administration,
these threats to the federal scientific enterprise have escalated markedly.
The report documents a long list of tactics being used by the
Trump administration and Congress to diminish the role of science in our
democracy:
Sidelining independent science advice. The Trump administration has weakened federal advisory committees that provide scientific advice to the government.
Appointing
conflicted individuals to scientific leadership positions. President
Trump has appointed to the highest positions in government individuals with
little science background and with strong ties to the industries they are
charged with regulating.
Leaving key science
positions vacant. President Trump has taken an unusually
long time to fill many high-level science positions, signaling the low priority
his administration places on science.
Revoking
science-based safeguards. Aided
and abetted by Congress, President Trump has allowed politics to supersede
science by signing an unprecedented 13 congressional resolutions rolling back
science-based protections, including safe drinking water standards and
safeguards to prevent worker exposure to harmful chemicals.
Misrepresenting
climate science and rolling back climate change safeguards. Attacking
science-based policies and communications on preparing for and mitigating
climate change is a clear focus for the Trump administration. Officials have
misrepresented climate science, removed climate-related content from several
government communications, and proposed sharp reductions in climate research.
Weakening
science-based pollution standards without scientific justification. The
administration has delayed or repealed several science-based pollution
standards designed to protect public health, including protections against
mercury, air toxics, and coal wastewater, without replacing them with new,
scientifically defensible standards.
Undermining
protections from hazards at work and home. The
Trump administration has delayed many science-based rules intended to keep
communities safe from dangerous chemical spills and to safeguard workers from
harmful toxins, with little to support halts except for letters and petitions
from companies or industry trade associations.
Altering scientific
content on federal websites. The
scientific content of federal agency webpages, including those of the
Environmental Protection Agency, the State Department, and the Department of
Energy, has been altered or deleted since January, particularly in regard to
climate change science.
Reducing public
access to data. The Trump administration has reduced
public access to scientific data and information. The administration also has
stopped collecting certain data for programs that benefit disadvantaged groups.
And it has withdrawn requests to industry to supply data that would help inform
public health and environmental protections.
Restricting
communication of scientists. The
Trump administration is making it more difficult for government scientists to
speak publicly about their work, as well as about misconduct within an agency.
It has restricted communication with Congress, placed vague gag orders on
agency staff, and failed to affirm the ability of scientists to share their
expertise publicly.
Creating a hostile environment for scientific staff. Evidence is growing that a culture of fear is increasing at government agencies, undermining scientific research and communication. Scientists are speaking to the media anonymously out of fear of retaliation; some are afraid to utter the words “climate change.”
What we can do
In coming decades, the United States will face some of the most
difficult challenges in its history. Science and technology will play a crucial
role in helping us meet these challenges. The public deserves independent,
impartial scientific information, even—or perhaps especially—when that
information indicates the need for politically unpopular or inconvenient
action.
Recognizing the stakes, scientists and science supporters are
speaking up, building on the momentum of successful marches and new opportunities
for political engagement, and highlighting the likely consequences of the
administration's actions for public health, safety, and the environment.
To defend the federal scientific enterprise and the public
protections that it supports, the report offers recommendations for scientists
and science supporters, Congress, and the media:
Scientists and science supporters should
scrutinize administration and congressional actions and sound the alarm when
science is misused. They can also play a unique role in articulating to others
the importance of science in our daily lives. Communicating the importance of
science and science-based policies to the public and decision-makers is crucial
to fighting attacks on science in this highly charged political environment.
Congress should use its oversight
authorities to investigate and hold accountable the administration for actions
that threaten scientific integrity and science-based policies, and it should
act to protect whistle-blowers. With the growing trend of abuses against science
in the Trump administration, Congress must exercise its full authority as a check
against the executive branch. Also, Congress should pass legislation to better
protect federal scientists and the integrity of science in our federal
agencies.
Journalists must continue to hold
administration officials and members of Congress accountable for their words
and actions and investigate cases of suppressing, misrepresenting,
manipulating, or otherwise politicizing science, along with related allegations
of wrongdoing in our federal government. The media should seek out scientists
as sources when possible and call out agencies that place unnecessary barriers
on communications between journalists and government scientists.
For more: Executive summary Full report