U.S. science policy drifts, recalling Soviet era
Political scientists warn that the Trump administration’s handling of climate science and environmental policy recalls the Soviet dismissal of scientific integrity and comes amid a rapid erosion of democratic norms.
Lois Parshley reports for Grist.
In short:
- The administration has repeatedly weakened environmental regulations, from the Clean Water Act to the Endangered Species Act, while claiming emergencies that fast-track fossil fuel projects.
- Politically connected companies, especially in oil and gas, benefit from tax breaks, regulatory rollbacks, and legal leverage, amplifying corporate influence over public policy.
- The article links Stalin-era Soviet agriculture under Trofim Lysenko to the Trump administration’s climate and environmental policies, showing how both regimes subordinated science to ideology and political loyalty.
Key quote:
“The lack of constraints on the executive allow politically connected companies to either get around existing laws or to write laws in such a way that they’re toothless.”
— Timothy Frye, professor of post-Soviet politics, Columbia University
Why this matters:
Under the Trump administration, environmental rules designed to protect water, wildlife, and communities are being routinely rewritten or ignored, sometimes under the guise of an “emergency” that conveniently speeds up oil and gas projects. Federal agencies are challenging long-settled science on climate change and other environmental issues, with profound implications for human health. At the same time, companies with deep political ties are thriving, scoring tax breaks, looser regulations, and enjoying a legal playing field tilted in their favor. Frye notes that autocratic leaders often build their economies around natural resources because they are easier to control than other industries. Whether the U.S. will be able to recover its institutions, environmental protections, and its standing as a global scientific leader remains to be seen.
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