Trump Cuts to UC Study Grants Seem Discriminatory, Judge Says

Ninth Circuit judges appeared amenable Thursday to University of California researchers’ argument that the Trump administration’s cutting of hundreds of millions in grants violated the First Amendment.

The administration is asking the San Francisco-based appeals court to temporarily pause a lower court’s injunction blocking the government’s cuts while the full appeal on the merits plays out.

The researchers argued that the cuts were a form of viewpoint discrimination under the First Amendment because they targeted any research related to what the administration believed to be promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion.

“You seem to have taken this action based on the ...