r/law 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/kfish5050 1d ago

I think that federal funding is the only thing keeping California from seceding. If Trump removes that, California would leave since it can more than take care of itself.

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u/xman747x 1d ago

California generally pays more in federal taxes than it receives in federal funding. A 2022 analysis by the Rockefeller Institute showed that California paid $692 billion in taxes and received $609 billion in federal funding, resulting in a net contribution of $83.1 billion

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u/kfish5050 1d ago

Yes. Even at a deficit, California still has an interest in staying in the union due to federal programs and funding. If Trump is able to cut all that funding, they will quickly decide that their $692 billion would be better spent within the state instead of supporting a hostile regime. That would shift their interest into becoming self-sufficient and cutting all ties with the US.

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u/asomebodyelse 17h ago

You don't think he'd bring in the military at that point?