White House Moves to Take Control of N.I.H. Grants
Federal officials are drafting an executive order that would place grants under review by an outside panel, the latest effort to redirect billions of dollars in research spending.
By Carolyn Y. Johnson Sheryl Gay Stolberg Tony Romm and Michael C. Bender
The White House has begun drafting a new executive order that could further cement President Trump’s ability to control billions of dollars in scientific grants and expand the administration’s pressure campaign against elite universities.
Discussed at a highly contentious meeting at the White House on Friday, the order aims to create a new external committee with the power to veto awards in the National Institute of Health’s vast research portfolio that do not conform to Mr. Trump’s political agenda, according to people with knowledge of the effort.
During the meeting, Mr. Trump repeatedly complained about his administration’s failure to bring Harvard University in particular to heel. The administration has been unable to hammer out a deal with the nation’s oldest and wealthiest university, a central plank of his broader push against “woke” ideology in higher education.
The White House has also lost a pair of lawsuits to Harvard, including one ruling that blocked cuts to the university’s existing federal research grants. The government has said it plans to appeal.
