Donald Trump Fired 22 Members of the US Science Council

Donald Trump fired all 22 members of the National Science Board (NSB), the policy and advisory body of the National Science Foundation (NSF). (IST)

JAKARTA - The administration of US President Donald Trump fired all 22 members of the National Science Board (NSB), the policy and advisory body of the National Science Foundation (NSF).

Al Jazeera was quoted as saying on Wednesday, April 29, that the dismissal was known from former board members and members of parliament. NSB has so far helped determine the direction of the policies of national science institutions funded by the US government.

Roger Beachy, a professor emeritus of biology at Washington University, said he and other members were not given a reason. The firing email only contained a brief thank you for service.

Beachy, who was reappointed by Trump in 2020, expects the government to appoint a new board. However, he is concerned about the direction of research and education that the NSF will support in the future.

Yolanda Gil, a professor of computer science at the University of Southern California, called the dismissal unprecedented.

"We don't know what the plans are for the NSF and the NSB," Gil told Al Jazeera.

Democratic politicians criticized the move. Zoe Lofgren, a senior member of the House of Representatives Science Committee, assessed that Trump was harming American science and innovation. He also questioned whether the NSB would be filled with MAGA loyalists.

The White House defended the decision. A spokesman said the Supreme Court's 2021 ruling on the authority of administrative patent judges was the basis. According to the White House, there are constitutional questions about officials who are appointed but not confirmed by the Senate.

The White House confirmed that NSF work continued without interruption.

But this dismissal comes after the Trump administration had previously cut the NSF through the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), an agency once led by Elon Musk and now disbanded. More than 1,600 NSF grants worth nearly US$1 billion were canceled or suspended.

NSF was established in 1950 as an independent federal agency. By 2025, the agency spent more than US$8 billion on scientific research and education.

For the research world, the NSB's composition is not a small matter. This council helps determine what research is supported, what kind of science education gets a place, and how the NSF carries out its mandate.