The Trump administration has dismissed all 22 members of the board that sets policies for the government-funded National Science Foundation (NSF), according to a former board member and lawmakers. The firings at the National Science Board (NSB), the policy and advisory arm of the NSF, mark the latest move by the Trump regime to radically restructure the government, including downsizing the Department of Education and effectively eliminating the US Agency for International Development (USAID).
Roger Beachy, who was reappointed to a second six-year term on the board by Trump in 2020, said he and his colleagues were not given a reason for their dismissal. "The termination email was brief and to the point, with a 'thank you for your service,'" Beachy told Al Jazeera. He expressed concern about the nature of research and education that would be supported by the agency in the future, stating that whether the board is partisan or independent is critical to the NSF's success.
Democratic lawmakers blasted the Trump regime's action. Zoe Lofgren, the most senior member of the US House of Representatives' science committee, called it "the latest stupid move made by a president who continues to harm science and American innovation." She questioned whether Trump would fill the NSB with "MAGA loyalists" and described the firings as a "real bozo the clown move."
The White House and the NSF did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Trump has yet to publicly confirm or comment on the firings, but his regime previously targeted the NSF for sweeping cuts. Under last year's cost-cutting drive led by tech billionaire Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency, officials scrapped or halted more than 1,600 NSF grants worth nearly $1 billion.
The NSF, established as an independent federal agency in 1950, spent more than $8 billion on scientific research and education in 2025, making it one of the largest individual funders of science worldwide. The dismissals raise concerns about the future direction of US science funding under the Trump regime.
Source: www.aljazeera.com