The People’s March on January 18, 2025 in Washington D.C. Photo credit: @greenmoonart1 on Flickr
The beginning of this Trump administration has been chaotic, disturbing, and utterly confusing. But if the new administration has made one thing clear, it’s that nothing, not even the U.S. Constitution, will stop them from attempting to enact their dangerous, extreme plan to hurt our families, destroy the environment, and upend our government and our lives. President Trump, Elon Musk, and their cronies want to make it more difficult, or even impossible, for the government to work for working families. Instead, they’re manipulating it to benefit themselves and their billionaire polluter buddies.
Since he took office less than a month ago, President Trump’s administration has made several attempts to hamstring the government’s ability to serve the people. To kick off their second week in office, administration officials released a memo announcing cuts to programs that protect the safety and wellbeing of the 330 million people in the U.S. In the chaos following the release of the memo, children are missing meals; federally funded research and hospitals have ground to a halt; environmental grants for things like installing solar panels in low-income communities are frozen; and disaster relief and Medicaid funds aren’t going out the door, to name just a small handful of the impacts.
Due to these disastrous consequences, the memo sparked intense backlash from members of Congress and the public alike. As a result, the courts granted an injunction against the memo and the administration withdrew it less than 48 hours after its release…sort of.
While the administration made a show of rescinding the memo, the cuts it outlined are still in force for many programs. Just two weeks in, President Trump had issued a record 38 executive orders on issues spanning environmental action, trans rights, immigration, and more. Buried in the mountain of executive orders are directives to do exactly what was outlined in the memo and cut funding for government programs that help sustain families and protect the environment. This back and forth has left agency staff and those in need of program funding with no clarity on how to move forward.
The administration has shown us their playbook straight out of Project 2025 and Elon Musk’s whims– they’re going to keep pushing for these cuts with every tool they have at their disposal, and some tools they don’t. Their actions are already having far-reaching and devastating consequences on communities across the country:
There is a lot at stake here, and climate and clean energy programs are key targets of these sweeping aid cuts.
Environmental Protection Agency grant programs, including programs that protect communities’ access to clean air and drinking water. As of the date of publication, most EPA climate and clean programs have been halted, including grants to protect communities across the country that have already been signed and cannot legally be clawed back. The impacts on public and environmental health of losing these programs will be felt nationwide, but particularly in communities of color and other historically excluded communities.
Climate and clean energy grant programs put in place by the Biden-Harris administration, including those authorized by the Inflation Reduction Act and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. These federal investments are sparking millions of dollars in private investment and creating hundreds of thousands of jobs across the country. Halting these programs “is taking money from the pockets of Americans” and will result in lost jobs and higher energy costs across the country.
The Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), which helps lower energy costs for an estimated 5.9 million families to ensure people are able to heat and cool their homes. As we see more frequent and intense extreme weather, including record-breaking heat and dangerously cold temperatures, LIHEAP has only become more vital in keeping families safe.
Disaster Unemployment Assistance, which provides financial assistance to individuals who, as a direct result of a major disaster, including climate-fueled disasters like wildfires or hurricanes, have lost their job or had their employment interrupted. As a result of climate change, we are seeing more frequent and intense disasters across the country, and this will only continue to get worse. Disaster unemployment assistance is critical to ensuring the safety and well-being of our communities.
Nutrition assistance programs like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and WIC, which provides nutritional, educational, and immunization services to qualifying women, children, and infants. These programs provide nutritional assistance to an average of 41.2 million people (12.6% of the U.S. population) each month.
And more.
The Trump administration is stealing taxpayer dollars and services from communities to pay for tax cuts for billionaires and their ultra-wealthy friends. This is not what people across our country voted for, and Elon Musk, who is behind a lot of these cuts, is not even an elected official. President Trump and his allies are betraying the promises he made to the people of this country, and they are just getting started.
While we may be overwhelmed and frustrated, we are not powerless. Pressure from the public forced the White House to rescind their illegal funding cut memo. States, unions, nonprofits and other groups have taken the administration to court and are already blocking (at least temporarily) some of the cuts, purges and Musk’s attempts to hijack government systems. Our voices matter and can be used to fight this extreme administration, but we need you to speak out.
Find your members of Congress and let them know that we won’t back down, and they shouldn’t either. The only way we can stop this assault on our climate and democracy is if members from both parties are hearing from their constituents that there is too much at stake to sit on the sidelines. Senators and representatives are already starting to feel the pressure – let’s keep it up!
Here at LCV, we’re urging Congress to reject President Trump’s dangerous and unqualified Cabinet nominees and to fight to protect the climate and clean energy investments the administration has set its sights on cutting. Join us and tell your members of Congress to stand strong for climate and stand up to the dangerous and illegal actions of the Trump administration.
THE BEST THING YOU CAN DO RIGHT NOW
President Trump has called climate change a hoax and has shown that he’s willing to undo our movement’s progress addressing the climate crisis, along with access to clean air and water. Make your voice heard: Sign the petition telling Congress to stand strong and protect hard-won climate and environmental protections.
Tell Congress to Stand Strong for Climate
©2025 League of Conservation Voters
