Scientific integrity and academic freedom
Kleptocratic regimes often undermine independent science to consolidate power and suppress inconvenient truths, skewing data, hindering transparency, and prioritizing political loyalty over public welfare. They may attack scientists who report on issues of safety, public health, or environmental harm that run counter to the economic interests of the regime's supporters. They may also cut off funding, especially when research does not meet the ideological standards of the administration. Recent moves under the Trump administration illustrate this trend.
ACTION 83 | Political interference in key climate and public health institutions
At the National Institutes of Health (NIH), scientists signed an open letter warning that funding cuts and political interference were jeopardizing crucial research efforts. Meanwhile, at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the administration pursued plans to privatize the National Weather Service, raising concerns that public access to accurate weather forecasts could be undermined for private gain. In both cases, much of the research has dealt with climate scientists who show how human activity—especially fossil fuel use—contributes to disaster and crisis. (Last updated 4/28/25)
ACTION 84 | Cutting funding for research and science
America's research institutions and universities are widely considered to be the best in the world. This contributes to America's continued dominance in many fields and helps fuel industry and innovation. Of course, it also encourages independent thinking and requires academic freedom. These can be inconvenient, especially when discoveries run counter to ideology or oligarchs' business interests. Under the Trump administration, scientists warned that sweeping cuts to federal research funding were systematically weakening the country's scientific institutions, including agencies critical to public health, agriculture, and energy innovation. At the same time, the administration escalated punitive actions against universities, targeting federal grants for academic research programs deemed politically unfavorable. New executive orders also disrupted university research partnerships, leading to uncertainty, delays, and canceled projects across the country. These steps illustrate how attacks on independent science can erode not just individual studies, but the broader knowledge infrastructure vital to democratic accountability. (Last updated 4/28/25)
ACTION 85 | The administration tries bend universities to toe its ideological line
Under the Trump administration, universities are facing mounting political pressure to conform. Some institutions, such as Columbia University, moved quickly to appease the administration's demands by revising course offerings, staffing, and speech policies in response to threats of funding cuts. This represents an unprecedented level of direct control of an academic institution by the U.S. government. While Columbia University's public concessions have made the most headlines, the University of California system, Dartmouth, and many others have been among those that have scrubbed language from their sites and rushed to hire administration-oriented officials. In Columbia's case, the administration also threatened to withhold $400 million in federal funds unless the university altered its programming and oversight structures. By April 2025, these efforts expanded nationally, with increasing interventions in public and private universities. Together, these moves suggest a strategic effort to erode institutional independence and concentrate ideological control. However, the tide may be beginning to turn. Harvard, for example, has resisted the administration's push, including by filing suit. Reporting suggests legal proceedings were ongoing in late April 2025, but federal funding freezes remained in place. (Last updated 4/28/25)
ACTION 86 | Arresting and expelling foreign students exercising right to free speech
The Trump administration has increasingly used immigration enforcement to target foreign students engaged in political speech, raising serious free expression concerns. According to Reason, a libertarian magazine, the underlying legal theory—articulated by figures like now-Secretary of State Marco Rubio—asserts that non-citizens have diminished First Amendment protections, opening the door to deportation based on political views. High-profile cases include Mahmoud Kahlil, a Columbia student facing deportation proceedings amid accusations of political bias by the administration in its enforcement decisions; Momodou Taal, a Cornell graduate ordered to surrender to ICE after participating in pro-Palestinian activism; and Rümeysa Öztürk, a Tufts University student detained without bond after a street arrest. Regardless of whether one agrees with these individuals, these actions have raised alarms about the erosion of political rights for immigrants and the chilling effect on campus speech. (Last updated 4/28/25)
The consequences of these enforcement actions are not limited to pro-Palestinian advocacy or to foreign students. Domestic students have also faced intimidation for political expression. At George Mason University, campus police were called on a student after the student published an opinion piece criticizing President Trump. The problem of intimidation is also spreading beyond campuses, with the relaunch of a century-old organization targeting and confronting pro-Palestinian activism on campus. The government "mistakenly" revoked hundreds of student visas, often for political speech, with legal status only restored after weeks of uncertainty and advocacy efforts. These heavy-handed measures appear to lack broad public support: an April 2025 poll by FIRE, a nonprofit free speech organization, found that only 14% of Americans support deporting foreigners based solely on pro-Palestinian political views. Together, especially when viewed alongside the deportation of American citizens, these developments illustrate a dangerous precedent of using immigration law to silence dissent. (Last updated 4/28/25)