Court filing bolsters claims California targeted in Trump grant cuts

The Trump administration has acknowledged in court filings that it canceled billions of dollars in clean-energy grants to California and other Democratic-leaning states while allowing hundreds of similar grants in Republican-leaning states to move forward, intensifying accusations that federal funding decisions were driven by politics rather than project performance. "DOE accepts that the inclusion of grants in the October notice tranche was based solely on the political identity of the grant recipient's state..." wrote DOE lawyer Jeff Novak. According to the filing, 284 energy grants were terminated because they were located in states that voted for Harris and were represented by two Democratic-caucusing senators. Federal attorneys said the grants were not selected for cancellation based on performance, cost savings, or other programmatic criteria. The disclosure appears to contradict previous statements from Energy Secretary Chris Wright. California Sens. Schiff and Padilla previously requested a federal watchdog investigation. The Trump administration has pushed back. Energy Department spokesman Ben Dietderich called descriptions of the filing as an admission "a misrepresentation" and argued that DOE staff evaluated projects without considering politics. Sen. Patty Murray and Rep. Marcy Kaptur called the cancellations "outright un-American."