2026-07-25 · contested story

Trump Administration Admits Canceling Grants to States That Did Not Vote for Him

The Trump administration admitted in court filings that it canceled $7.5 billion in Biden-era clean energy grants 'based solely' on whether recipient states voted for Kamala Harris in 2024 and had two Democratic senators. Department of Energy lawyers conceded that 284 of 624 grants initially recommended for termination were cut purely for political reasons, not 'based on any programmatic, statutory, cost-reduction, or performance-based factor.' The remaining 340 grants in Republican-led states were left intact despite also being recommended for cancellation. Left-leaning outlets frame this as definitive proof of illegal corruption and weaponization of federal funds to punish political opponents, with The Guardian calling it an 'apparent admission' and Common Dreams describing it as a 'stunning admission' of targeting Democrats. Center outlets focus on the factual admission in court documents while noting the Energy Department's claim that the filing was 'misrepresented' and that only the timing, not the decisions themselves, was political. Right-leaning sources like the New York Post emphasize Democratic accusations while prominently featuring the Energy Department's denials that politics influenced the actual decisions, framing it as a he-said-she-said dispute despite the court filing's explicit language.

How each side frames it

left
"Trump Team Admits He's Been Defunding States That Didn't Vote for Him"
"This administration has now admitted in court what has long been obvious: it terminated nearly 300 cost-cutting energy projects for no reason other than the fact that the states they were in did not vote for the president in the 2024 election. This is an astounding admission that the president and his team corruptly abused their power to kill good jobs and punish hard-working families because of their political views."
"Trump Goons Make Bombshell Admission About Enemies List"
"Weaponizing the Federal government like this is outright un-American, and it's hardworking families already struggling with sky-high costs who are suffering the consequences of this corrupt abuse of power."
"Secretary Wright swore up and down for months that these project terminations had absolutely nothing to do with politics, and now his lawyers are declaring that, in fact, politics was the only consideration."
center
"Federal green grants canceled last year were selected 'solely' based on a state's political affiliation, the Trump administration said in a recent court filing."
"In a statement on Friday, a spokesperson for the US energy department said of the report: 'That is a misrepresentation of the court filing. None of the termination decisions were based on political considerations.' The acknowledgment of political considerations 'was referring to the timing of the announcement, not of the decisions themselves', the spokesperson claimed."
"DOE accepts that the inclusion of grants in the October notice tranche was based solely on the political identity of the grant recipient's state, i.e., whether the recipient's location and/or place of performance was in a Blue State or a non-Blue State"
"The administration made the admission in a court filing this month responding to a lawsuit brought by University of California researchers challenging the cancellation."
"Energy Secretary Chris Wright denied that decisions made around grant cancellations were partisan. 'No decisions were made on politics. I keep hearing that charge. It's bulls---t. We're going to say it a million times,' Wright said."
right
"A spokesperson for the Department of Energy told the New York Times on Friday that the initial review of grants, which was later submitted to the White House for further consideration, was apolitical, and that the secretary's testimony remained accurate."
"Democrats contend the filing demonstrates that Trump administration officials 'corruptly abused their power' to terminate grants solely on the basis of the political identity of the states receiving federal money."
"Novak's filing indicated that while the OMB's selections were political, for the original list of 624 cancellations proposed by the DOE, 'the political identity of the grant recipient's state was not a factor.'"
"At the time, the White House said it was slashing the grants, passed during the Biden administration, to prevent tax dollars from being wasted. Office of Management and Budget director and Project 2025 architect Russ Vought called the money 'Green New Scam funding to fuel the Left's climate agenda'"
"'That is a misrepresentation of the court filing and of Mr. Novak's words,' Ben Dietderich, press secretary for the Energy Department, said in a statement. 'None of the termination decisions were based on political considerations. Secretary Wright has explained this numerous times in briefings on Capitol Hill.'"

What each side left out

The right left out — covered by the NBC News & The Guardian & House.gov (Democrats)
The left left out — covered by the The Guardian & NBC News & New York Post
The center left out — covered by the The Guardian & NBC News
The right left out — covered by the House.gov (Democrats) & NBC News
The left left out — covered by the New York Post & NBC News

What's actually true?

[verified] The Trump administration canceled 284 federal grants worth $7.5 billion in October 2025
[verified] With one exception, the 284 terminated grants had a recipient location in a state that awarded its electoral votes to Kamala Harris in 2024 and has two Democratic-caucusing senators
[verified] The Energy Department initially proposed canceling more than 600 grants in both Republican and Democratic states
[verified] The remaining 340 grants in Republican-led states that voted for Trump were not canceled despite being recommended for termination
[verified] Energy Secretary Chris Wright testified in June that 'No decisions were made on politics' and called such accusations 'bullshit'
[verified] The court filing states grants were not terminated 'based on any programmatic, statutory, cost-reduction or performance-based factor'
[verified] OMB Director Russell Vought announced the cuts as canceling 'Green New Scam funding to fuel the Left's climate agenda' in 16 Democratic states
[verified] The court filing came in response to a lawsuit by University of California researchers challenging the cancellation of Biden-era grants

The narrative clash

Whether politics influenced grant termination decisions
Left: DOE accepts that the inclusion of grants in the October notice tranche was based solely on the political identity of the grant recipient's state, i.e., whether the recipient's location and/or place of performance was in a Blue State or a non-Blue State
Right: That is a misrepresentation of the court filing and of Mr. Novak's words. None of the termination decisions were based on political considerations. Secretary Wright has explained this numerous times in briefings on Capitol Hill.
What the court filing actually says about political considerations
Left: DOE accepts that neither the inclusion of the ARCHES grant nor any other grants in the October notice tranche was based on any programmatic, statutory, cost-reduction or performance-based factor
Right: The acknowledgment of political considerations 'was referring to the timing of the announcement, not of the decisions themselves', the spokesperson claimed.
Consistency with Energy Secretary Wright's previous testimony
Left: Secretary Wright swore up and down for months that these project terminations had absolutely nothing to do with politics, and now his lawyers are declaring that, in fact, politics was the only consideration.
Right: There is no contradiction, and any suggestion of a contradiction is a misrepresentation of the court filing.

12 sources analyzed

The Guardian The New Republic Common Dreams NBC News The Independent New York Post Baton Rouge Business Report WPRI.com House.gov New Mexico Political Report The Preamble | Sharon McMahon The Daily Beast

Perspectivity reads the coverage — not just who published it.

Read the full interactive analysis →