Trump admin launches data-driven audit of federal funding to Democratic-led states

The Trump administration ordered a broad, data-driven review of federal funds going to 14 Democratic-led states (plus DC), requesting detailed spending data for 2025–2027 to identify waste and potential fraud rather than withholding funds. Led by OMB Director Russel Vought, the inquiry expands an ongoing effort sparked by Minnesota fraud allegations and aims to map spending across grants, loans, contracts, and other awards, including those to colleges, localities, and nonprofits. The move follows prior actions targeting sanctuary cities and comes as the administration tightens scrutiny of blue-state spending, with agencies given a near-term deadline to report the data.