Trump has attacked science 80 times, group says

President Trump and his administration have carried out 80 “attacks” on science in his first two years in office, according to a group that opposes his science policies.

The Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) said in a Monday report that the attacks have been in areas like censoring scientific findings, halting studies, stopping data collection and politicizing grants.

The group says Trump’s record on science shows a consistent pattern of hostility that threatens public health and the outcomes federal agencies are charged with achieving.

“The administration is trying to accomplish its goals by pushing science out of the process,” Jacob Carter, the report’s leader author and a scientist at the group, said in a statement.

“After two years, it’s clear that this administration values neither the work of federal scientists nor the health and safety of the public. Science is being silenced, in a truly unprecedented way — and we’re all paying the cost.”

The UCS said the Environmental Protection Agency and the Interior Department stand out because of their hostility to science. But the issues spanned across the government, in areas like health and LGBTQ rights.

The UCS is using the report to ask Congress to investigate the policies and decisions it sees as anti-science and to pass legislation to reinforce the role of science at agencies.

“Using the range of oversight tactics at its disposal — including hearings, letters, deposition authority, and subpoena power — Congress can be a powerful ally for scientists and science advocates,” it said in the report.