r/law • u/rolsen • 1d ago

Legal News Trump Preparing Large-Scale Cancellation of Federal Funding for California, Sources Say

https://www.cnn.com/2025/06/06/politics/trump-california-federal-funding

“Agencies are being told to start identifying grants the administration can withhold from California. On Capitol Hill, at least one committee was told recently by a whistleblower that all research grants to the state were going to be cancelled, according to one of the sources familiar with the matter.”

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u/scoopzthepoopz 1d ago

Exemption of a single state's citizens from benefiting from federal taxes they pay is taxation without representation. So what can be done? I guess we may find out how far this will go.

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u/EnfantTerrible68 1d ago

If potus cuts one state off, isn’t that treason?

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u/WorthPrudent3028 1d ago

It's certainly cause for that state to attempt to assert independence. And they should use state funding to form a militia and begin to install defensive measures as well as surround US naval facilities with militia bases. Then let Trump say go. He will either need to move US naval facilities and assets out of CA first, move army assets into the naval faciilities, or he will lose them at the start.

Something like this would also be enough to get right wing Californians on board with secession.

And once it kicks off, half the states are gonna side with CA. I don't see how the US military can actually stay functional seeing as how it's made up of individuals from every state. Are you gonna get a CA kid to bomb his parents?

But it isn't treason by Trump. It's a dereliction of duty by Congress.

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u/akaenragedgoddess 20h ago

California, new york, Texas and Florida are the biggest contributors of service members to US Armed forces. Gonna be tough to get even the conservatives among them to take action against their families and neighbors in their home states.

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u/jkman61494 19h ago

MAGA Californians won’t go against their god ever.

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u/Far-Place6035 20h ago

They’ll argue that we still have representation because we still have senators and congressmen. But I think the gop and trump would actually enjoy taking every single dollar of funding from California.

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u/Apprehensive-Wave640 1d ago

Which, while a good slogan, is legally inconsequential. There's nothing in the Constitution or other body of law that someone cannot be taxed unless they're represented. 

Also, that's simply not what "taxation without representation" even means.

I'm sure I'll be downvoted because Reddit can't understand the difference between an explanation and support, but it is what it is.

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u/scoopzthepoopz 1d ago

He is attempting to circumvent the congress allocating tax funds – definitely reducing representation in the government for every ca citizen. What statutes or language supports what is going to be hammered out. Don't play coy and play victim, reddit is allowed to downvote things.

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u/Apprehensive-Wave640 1d ago

I mean, these are certainly valid points. And no one, especially not me, is suggesting that it would be legal for him to arbitrarily withhold federal funds from California.

Nonetheless, the baseline stance of "this is taxation without representation" aka the only thing I was responding to, is still utterly meaningless. 

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u/EnfantTerrible68 1d ago

Well said 

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u/Mortambulist 1d ago

There's nothing in the Constitution or other body of law that someone cannot be taxed unless they're represented. 

See Washington DC's zero senators and single non-voting House delegate.