White House Targets Social‑Science Funding

The White House has proposed cutting the National Science Foundation budget by nearly 55% to about $4 billion and, in the same request, removes funding for the NSF directorate that supports social, behavioral, and economic research. NSF leadership reportedly told staff they would dissolve that directorate in response to the request, a move that would shift federal research priorities and funding flows away from social‑science fields. — If enacted, this would politicize federal research funding, reduce support for social and economic studies that inform policy, and reshape academic labor markets and future evidence available to lawmakers.