The Supreme Court Should Keep Its Hands Off NIH. No Stay

Reposted with permission from Science and Freedom Alliance (SAFA). This is important info about the courts and medical research. The Supreme Court appears poised to rule that the Trump administration’s grant terminations are totally legal and totally fine. (They’re not legal and not fine.) Such a SCOTUS ruling would be terrible for NSF, NIH, cancer research, and every university and scientist. Call Congress, speak about this to the press, and take to social media to spread the word. Be strong, everyone: we will win by speaking out together.
More below.

The Trump administration has repeatedly interfered inside NIH, including by terminating funding for thousands of projects. A Reagan-appointed trial court judge found that hundreds of these grant terminations were ‘breathtakingly’ illegal and ordered NIH to immediately reinstate them. Now, the Trump administration has appealed this reinstatement order to the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court will make a decision on the stay request soon on the shadow docket, where the Court issues often unsigned decisions, at unpredictable times, providing little or no reasoning. The Supreme Court has been behaving in a ‘lawless’ and political fashion, according to many legal experts (see FAQs below), and the Court seems likely to stay the trial court’s order, allowing the Trump administration to re-terminate the grants. A Supreme Court stay would throw NIH into further chaos, harming efforts to award many other grants. This could happen at any time.

What can we do now? The Supreme Court responds to public pressure. We can speak out in every venue available. Tell the Supreme Court the public is watching. Let’s demand: No Stay. And demand the Court and Trump administration keep their Hands Off NIH.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is the world’s largest biomedical research funder. It is the backbone of America’s science research industry. NIH is a major contributor to the health of Americans and to the US economy.

The Trump administration has interfered politically inside NIH to terminate health research grants. These terminations are unprecedented, and are endorsed and likely directed by Project 2025 and Trump OMB head Russell Vought. These terminations are devastating, stopping critical research on diseases including cancer and Alzheimer’s. The terminations have also decimated biomedical training, ending support for high school, undergrad, and graduate students from all backgrounds.

The judge, William Young, said the terminations were "breathtakingly” arbitrary and capricious. The judge also noted the terminations were discriminatory: “I’ve sat on this bench now for 40 years. I’ve never seen government racial discrimination like this.”

Many Trump NIH grant terminations are illegal. A Reagan-appointed federal trial court judge found that hundreds of grant terminations by this administration, including grants for research relating to HIV, diversity, public opinion, and COVID, violated a foundational US federal agency law that bars arbitrary and capricious agency actions. The judge, William Young, said the terminations were "breathtakingly” arbitrary and capricious. The judge also noted the terminations were discriminatory: “I’ve sat on this bench now for 40 years. I’ve never seen government racial discrimination like this.” The Trump Administration appealed Judge Young’s reinstatement order to the appellate court. The First Circuit Court of Appeals rejected a stay request, and left in place Judge Young’s order barring the terminations.

Trump appealed to the Supreme Court, on the shadow docket. After the 1st Circuit refused to put Judge Young’s reinstatement order on hold, the Trump administration appealed to the Supreme Court, asking to stop (stay) the judge’s order and re-terminate the research grants. The Supreme Court has used the shadow docket, with its unsigned orders, to uphold much of Trump’s Project 2025 agenda.

The Court is likely to reinstate the Trump grant terminations, with devastating effects on science. In a different case involving the Department of Education, [… Post continues at link below: ]

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