Hey, (Your Name), Here's Your Chance to Stop The Madness

 Why I'm Asking You to Comment on a Federal Rule (and How)

I effectively abandoned this blog when I joined Facebook. I deleted my Facebook account when I couldn't ignore how evil they'd become.  I'm dusting off  this blog because I want you to see this. OMB has proposed a rule (docket OMB-2026-0034) that would put political appointees in charge of approving federal science grants, gutting independent expert review. Public comment closes July 13. Agencies must respond to substantive comments — so here's one to adapt. Don't copy it word-for-word; identical comments get bundled and answered once. Make it yours.  

Re: Docket OMB-2026-0034 — Proposed Guidance on Federal Financial Assistance

As a [your role] in [your state], I strongly oppose this proposed rule.

Replacing independent peer review with approval by political appointees substitutes loyalty for expertise. Reviewers at agencies like NIH and NSF are chosen for their command of the science; political appointees, however well-intentioned, are not equipped to judge whether a cancer study or a climate model is methodologically sound. This change doesn't improve accountability — it injects politics into questions that should be settled on evidence.

I am equally alarmed by the provision allowing grants to be terminated at any time, for any reason. Research depends on multi-year stability; a scientist who can be defunded mid-study on a political whim cannot do honest, long-horizon work. The restrictions on international collaboration are similarly self-defeating, cutting American researchers off from the global scientific community we have long led.

[One or two sentences here on why this matters to you personally — a family member's illness, your work, your community, your taxes funding research you value.]

This rule would slow discovery, erode public trust, and weaken America's standing in science. I urge OMB to withdraw it.

[Your name]