This article was originally published in the March 2024 print edition.
One week after the 2025 Presidential Inauguration, the United States Office of Management and Budget issued a directive abruptly suspending federal grants, loans and other financial aid programs. The official explanation? A “temporary pause” to reassess fiscal priorities. Though the freeze was lifted within 24 hours, its purpose was clear: to initiate a sweeping overhaul of public funding, focusing on cutting expenditures linked to so-called “woke” ideologies.