2026-07-28 · 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 $7.6 billion in clean energy grants to 284 projects based 'solely on the political identity of the grant recipient's state'—specifically, whether states awarded their electoral votes to Kamala Harris in 2024 and had two Democratic senators. The admission came in response to lawsuits challenging the October 2025 cancellations, which affected 16 blue states including California, New York, and New Jersey. Left-leaning outlets frame this as an unprecedented abuse of power and unconstitutional discrimination. The Los Angeles Times reports that legal experts call it 'blatant politics in cutting off grants' that is 'illegal,' while Jezebel characterizes it as 'pure, petty punishment' and notes Energy Secretary Chris Wright 'lied and swore through his teeth' when denying political motivations. Center outlets focus on the factual admission and Democratic outrage, with CNN and NBC reporting the court filing details and reactions from lawmakers who call it 'weaponizing the federal government.' Right-leaning sources are largely silent on this specific story—no articles from National Review or Fox News directly address the clean energy grant cancellations, though they cover related funding controversies. The New York Post's 2020 article on sanctuary city grants and Reason's piece on FEMA funding show the right has historically supported the administration's authority to condition federal grants based on policy compliance.

How each side frames it

left
"pure, petty punishment"
"Energy Secretary Chris Wright lied and swore through his teeth in a June House of Representatives hearing that none of the canceled grants had been politically motivated. As he put it: 'No decisions were made on politics. I keep hearing that charge. It's bullshit. We're going to say it a million times.'"
"The government has stipulated that grants were cut off to states that voted against Trump. As far as I know, this blatant politics in cutting off grants is unprecedented. It also is illegal"
"If you live in a state that did not vote for Donald Trump, then the federal government does not recognize that you are worthy of its services. It doesn't matter if you're one of the many millions of Republicans who happens to live in New York, Massachusetts or Oregon–in that case, you're just collateral who deserves to be denied clean energy investment or disaster aid by association."
"Team Trump approves disaster aid requests from red states, while rejecting comparable requests from blue states. Team Trump curtails healthcare funds, but only for states the White House doesn't like. Team Trump tried to freeze $10 billion in funding for social services programs in five states, but only blue states were impacted."
center
"In a July 15 filing that is part of a class action lawsuit seeking to overturn the decision, officials said the Energy Department sent to the Office of Management and Budget a list of more than 600 grants it recommended be canceled from recipients in states where former Vice President Kamala Harris won the vote, and that have two senators that caucus with Democrats."
"The Energy Department argued in a statement Friday that court filings did not show that termination decisions were made on a political basis. '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.'"
"The move is in line with Trump's broader second-term push to seek retribution against a range of perceived political opponents – and with his aggressive efforts to stymie federal funding in Democratic-led states."
"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"
"Projects that were cut were located in California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Vermont and Washington state. All 16 targeted states supported Harris"
right
"No direct coverage found in right-leaning sources"
"The Trump administration can withhold grant money from New York City and several states that don't give US Immigration and Customs Enforcement access to jails, an appeals court ruled Wednesday."
"The US Justice Department in a statement praised the decision, calling it a 'major victory for Americans.' 'Today's decision rightfully recognizes the lawful authority of the [US] attorney general to ensure that Department of Justice grant recipients are not at the same time thwarting federal law-enforcement priorities'"
"This package eliminates $9.4 billion dollars in unnecessary and wasteful spending at the State Department, USAID, and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which funds politically biased media outlets like NPR and PBS"
"The solution is fewer government agencies that can be weaponized—not more"

What each side left out

The left left out — covered by the NBC News & KOMU
The center left out — covered by the Los Angeles Times & Jezebel
The right left out — covered by the Los Angeles Times & CNN & NBC News & Jezebel
The left left out — covered by the NBC News
The center left out — covered by the Los Angeles Times

What's actually true?

[verified] The Trump administration admitted in court documents that it canceled grants 'based solely on the political identity of the grant recipient's state'
[verified] 284 grants totaling $7.6 billion were terminated in October 2025
[verified] All 16 states that lost funding voted for Kamala Harris in 2024 and have two Democratic-caucusing senators
[verified] Energy Secretary Chris Wright testified in June that 'No decisions were made on politics' regarding grant cancellations
[verified] The Energy Department originally recommended 624 grants for termination but OMB only canceled 284
[verified] Russell Vought posted on X that 'Nearly $8 billion in Green New Scam funding to fuel the Left's climate agenda is being cancelled'
[verified] California's ARCHES hydrogen hub stood to lose $1.2 billion in funding
[verified] The Energy Department's inspector general launched an investigation in December 2025 into the grant cancellations

The narrative clash

Whether grant decisions were politically motivated
Left: Energy Secretary Chris Wright lied and swore through his teeth in a June House of Representatives hearing that none of the canceled grants had been politically motivated. As he put it: 'No decisions were made on politics. I keep hearing that charge. It's bullshit. We're going to say it a million times.'
Right: paraphrased: The Energy Department argued in a statement Friday that court filings did not show that termination decisions were made on a political basis. '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.'
Legal interpretation of the court filing
Left: The government has stipulated that grants were cut off to states that voted against Trump. As far as I know, this blatant politics in cutting off grants is unprecedented. It also is illegal
Right: paraphrased: Appeals court ruled the Trump administration can withhold grant money from states that don't comply with federal immigration enforcement. 'Today's decision rightfully recognizes the lawful authority of the [US] attorney general to ensure that Department of Justice grant recipients are not at the same time thwarting federal law-enforcement priorities'
Characterization of the grants themselves
Left: Many of the projects are complex, multi-year efforts that involve a hodgepodge of agencies, experts and partnerships, such as ARCHES, the state's billion-dollar hydrogen hub awarded under President Biden
Right: Nearly $8 billion in Green New Scam funding to fuel the Left's climate agenda is being cancelled

13 sources analyzed

Los Angeles Times Jezebel Yahoo! Search CNN nj.com news.meaww.com NBC News komu.com WBAL 11 Reason Nat Review NY Post Fox News

Perspectivity reads the coverage — not just who published it.

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