The Trump administration just took a chainsaw to the progressive grift machine, slashing ties with more than three dozen left-wing organizations that had been gorging themselves on federal contracts, grants, and partnerships. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum's department reviewed over 2,000 active contracts and decided it was time to stop subsidizing people who hate everything this administration stands for.
Imagine the scene at these NGO offices. Years of cushy federal money, zero accountability, and suddenly the direct deposit stops hitting. Thoughts and prayers.
Matthew Middleton, the Interior Department's Principal Deputy Communications Director and Director of Research, didn't mince words. "Under President Trump and Secretary Burgum, the Department of the Interior is taking decisive action to ensure its partnerships and resources support the priorities of this administration and the interests of the American people," he said. Translation: we're done funding people who actively work against us.
The move saves taxpayers $4 million that would have gone straight into the coffers of progressive groups whose entire mission is to undermine the people who actually pay the bills around here. And that's just the Interior Department. Over at the EPA, Lee Zeldin has already announced $300 million in annual savings by taking similar action. That's real money, folks.
So who made the cut list? Three groups got named and shamed right out of the gate, according to Breitbart. The Hispanic Access Foundation, led by President and CEO Maite Arce, spent its time promoting DACA scholarships. Arce herself said in 2021 that "when DACA was first established, it provided Dreamers the ability to go to school, have a job, have a driver's license" — and apparently thought the federal government should keep bankrolling that mission forever.
Then there's Conservation International, an outfit dedicated to phasing out fossil fuels. Because nothing says "responsible stewardship of public lands" like trying to shut down the energy industry that heats your home and fills your gas tank.
And my personal favorite: The Cultural Landscape Foundation. These are the people who sued over changes at the Kennedy Center and threw a fit about the White House ballroom construction. They even launched something called "Landslide 2026" to highlight "threatened sites" — which is apparently what they call it when a Republican president redecorates.
Middleton made clear this isn't a one-and-done purge. "Interior will continue to invest in partnerships that expand access to public lands, promote responsible stewardship, and deliver tangible benefits to the American people," he said. Notice the key phrase there — "tangible benefits to the American people." Not tangible benefits to progressive activists with six-figure salaries and a grudge against capitalism.
The administration described the whole operation as "ending partnerships with groups that no longer represent the priorities of the American people." I'd argue most of these groups never represented the priorities of the American people. They represented the priorities of the donor class and the faculty lounge.
Thirty-six groups and counting. This isn't a trim. This is a long-overdue eviction, and the tenants just found out they don't have a lease.