Killing the golden goose
Donald Trump has done massive damage to America's science and innovation engine. We need to reverse course.
A report written back in 1945 could be seen as the blueprint for the next 80 years of American investment in science and innovation. It was titled "Science—The Endless Frontier," and it was authored by a man named Vannevar Bush. He was the director of the Office of Scientific Research and Development during World War II, and the report explained why scientific progress was so crucial for our nation.
"Scientific progress is one essential key to our security as a nation, to our better health, to more jobs, to a higher standard of living, and to our cultural progress," Bush wrote.
This report led to the creation of the National Science Foundation (NSF), helped transform universities into research institutions and contributed to a massive expansion of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). America came to understand that if it was going to be a superpower, it needed to be a leader in science and technology, and that this would benefit not just us but humanity more broadly.
Between 1945 and 1964, the federal government's investment in research and development skyrocketed. This investment peaked in 1964 at nearly 2 percent of GDP. By 2024, it had dropped to roughly 0.6 percent. Private investments in research obviously increased in many sectors over that period, but it's clear our political leaders have lost touch with some of the lessons of the 20th century.
Donald Trump has relentlessly attacked science and innovation since he returned to office, and his actions are making an already precarious situation significantly worse. If we continue down the path we're currently on, we could lose many of the benefits of investing in science that we've grown accustomed to.
At the beginning of Trump's second term, we saw the cancellation of thousands of NSF and NIH research grants. Thousands of government scientists were fired. The administration aggressively targeted climate research. It has cut and undermined crucial mRNA research over the past year. There are many, many ways in which science and innovation have become threatened in the United States.
This has created a hostile environment for researchers, and many of them are starting to take their work to other countries. This "brain drain" endangers America's place as a leader in science, and it will not be easy to rebuild what is currently being demolished. Many established researchers won't return, and many students who would have started a career in the U.S. might decide to pursue their interests elsewhere.
Thor Benson
America's place as a leader in science and innovation has often been referred to as its "golden goose." By investing in these things, we created an economic engine that produced some of the most valuable companies in the history of the world and enriched our nation. If we turn our back on scientific research, then we may lose that advantage.
Earlier this month, the Trump administration proposed further cuts to our science agencies. These would be harsh cuts to already dwindling budgets—including cutting the NSF budget in half. If Congress approves even some of these cuts, that could do lasting damage to our research and development efforts.
If anything, the United States should be increasing its investment in research and discovery. Before Trump came back to power, our funding levels were already significantly lower than they should be, and we would unquestionably benefit from further investments.
In the long run, reporting indicates we get $5 back for every $1 we invest in research and development. That sounds pretty beneficial to me. With the midterms approaching, we should demand that our political leaders fight for these investments and prevent America from losing its place as a leader in science and innovation.
