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Response Center

Real-time analysis of Trump-Vance administration actions, to support legal challenges and provide resources for the pro-democracy community.

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The Trump-Vance Administration is trying to

Undermine evidence-based scientific advice

Let others know:

https://democracy2025.org/response-center/eo-14177

What we know

This order reconstitutes the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology to focus on maintaining "unquestioned and unchallenged global technological dominance."

Formal Name

President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology

Status
Underway
Formal Identifier

EO 14177

January 23, 2025

Anticipated Impact

The President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) was first convened by President George W. Bush to provide advice to the President on science policy. Instead of prioritizing "evidence-based decisions guided by the best available science and data," like previous versions of the PCAST, President Trump's PCAST is directed to ensure that the United States maintains "unquestioned and unchallenged global technological dominance." While this might sound reasonable in the abstract, this order is an attempt to insert right-wing ideology into the PCAST. The order asserts, without basis, that the pursuit of scientific truth in America is now under threat from "ideological dogmas that prioritize group identity over individual merit, enforce conformity at the expense of innovative ideas, and inject politics into the heart of the scientific method." Trump's PCAST will be co-chaired by Elon Musk, creating an additional conflict of interest for Musk.

By the Numbers

Partner Analysis

People are fighting back

How communities are responding

Democracy 2025 and our partners are ready to counter threats to people's rights, justice, and equality in courtrooms and communities across the country. Learn more about how people and communities are responding to this harmful policy:

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