Trump administration asks Supreme Court to allow cancellation of millions of dollars in DEI grants

The Trump administration has asked the Supreme Court to let it cancel millions of dollars in discretionary grants from the Department of Education that are inconsistent with the president’s position on diversity, equity and inclusion.

Eight states challenged the administration’s decision and a federal judge in Massachusetts issued a temporary restraining order, curtailing the administration from taking action.

The Department of Justice told the high court in filings on Monday and last week that the lower court’s order forces “the government to continue paying millions of dollars in grant money.”

“The broader challenge facing the government is that district courts without jurisdiction are issuing orders forcing the Executive Branch to resurrect and keep paying out terminated grants and contracts, micromanaging how and when the Executive Branch pays — then insisting that no appellate review is available because their orders are [temporary restraining orders],” one filing reads.

The Justice Department has asked the court to take up the matter and rule that district courts “lack jurisdiction to order the government to pay out on contracts or grants when the suits are (like this one) basic breach-of-contract claims.”

According to the federal government’s court papers, the Trump administration moved to cancel certain grants within the Department of Education that violated its end of diversity, equity and inclusion policies that the president says violates the Constitution. Since taking office, President Trump has said DEI programs are unlawful as they run afoul of civil rights.

One grant that was canceled funded a project involving a racial and ethnic autobiography and asked individuals to discuss challenges they have faced over power imbalances. Another grant sought to instruct teachers on how to implement cultural and social-emotional learning with DEI practices.

Ultimately, the Education Department identified 104 grants that it believed needed to be canceled and left five intact during the review.

The states challenging the cancellation say some recipients of the grants — which they say Congress intended under the Teacher Quality Partnership to be used to recruit qualified teachers to underrepresented areas — did not get notice of the cancellation of the funds.