The MAGA War on Science Is Deadly—and It’s Just Getting Started

Another target of the administration’s aggression is this
thing called the “administrative state.” It’s hard to say exactly what the
administrative state is, other than a catchall for everything that
conservative ideologues don’t like about government. The trouble is, of course,
that the administrative state is really the workings of a functioning democratic
government, and the biggest part of the government consists of administering
things that are very hard to cut: the Defense Department foremost, but also
things like air traffic management, nuclear safety, and so on. Much easier to
cut are contracts with outside suppliers, especially those whose benefits
accrue to future generations. In short: Science funding has fallen victim to
the conservatives’ need to perform violence against a demonized bureaucracy.

Right now, we are only seeing the short-term consequence of
the Republican war on science: Projects are canceled, and funding is denied,
individual careers are broken, research institutions are diminished, and
scientists drain out of the country for
safe havens around the world. The long-term consequences of Trump’s war on
science are likely to be far more serious.

What can we do about it now? Congress could stop this, but
of course it won’t as long as MAGA holds the Republican majority hostage. The courts
are slowing some of it, but they won’t change the overall direction alone.
Private actors and foundations can step in to cover some gaps, but their efforts are
likely to amount to Band-Aids.