{"id":2600183,"date":"2026-05-08T04:13:42","date_gmt":"2026-05-08T08:13:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/federal-judge-ruled-doge-grant-cuts-violated-first-and-fifth-amendments\/"},"modified":"2026-05-08T04:14:46","modified_gmt":"2026-05-08T08:14:46","slug":"federal-judge-ruled-doge-grant-cuts-violated-first-and-fifth-amendments","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/federal-judge-ruled-doge-grant-cuts-violated-first-and-fifth-amendments\/","title":{"rendered":"Federal judge ruled DOGE grant cuts violated First and Fifth Amendments"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">22<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Ffederal-judge-ruled-doge-grant-cuts-violated-first-and-fifth-amendments%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2600183&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>A federal judge ruled that the Trump administration\u2019s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) unlawfully terminated hundreds of U.S.Department of the Humanities (National Endowment for the Humanities, NEH) grants. Judge Colleen McMahon (Southern District of New york) said the \u201cmass termination\u201d violated the First amendment and the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/leonard-leo-says-hes-not-capitulating-after-durbin-subpoena\/\" title=\"Leonard Leo remains steadfast after Durbin issues subpoena\">equal protection component<\/a> of the Fifth Amendment, and that DOGE officials lacked statutory authority to identify, select, or direct the grant cuts.  <\/p>\n<p>The court found the decisions were based on \u201cperceived viewpoint\u201d and used protected characteristics-such as race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, sex, and sexual orientation-to decide which grants to end, including projects concerning minority communities. McMahon declared the terminations unlawful, unconstitutional, and without legal effect, permanently enjoined the government from enforcing them, and ordered written notice to affected grant recipients.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<article class=\"fn-body\">\n<p>A federal judge ruled on Thursday that cuts to hundreds of humanities grants ordered by the Trump administration\u2019s <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/department-of-government-efficiency\/\">Department of Government Efficiency<\/a> were predicated on \u201cblatant\u201d discrimination and were unconstitutional.\u00a0DOGE was initially headed by former Trump administration adviser <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/elon-musk\/\">Elon Musk<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>U.S. District Judge for the Southern District of New York Colleen McMahon said the termination of the federal grants for the National Endowment for the Humanities violated the First and <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/fifth-amendment\/page\/5\/\">Fifth Amendments<\/a> of the Constitution. Moreover, McMahon said DOGE officials had no authority to order such grant cuts.<\/p>\n<section class=\"explore-more-section\" id=\"wex-recommended-widget\">\n<div class=\"magazine-container single\">\n<h1 class=\"magazine-title mt-2\">Recommended Stories<\/h1>\n<p>             <i class=\"fa-solid fa-play icon\"><\/i>         <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-grid\">\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/4560255\/trump-motorcade-lincoln-memorial-reflecting-pool\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>Trump motorcade drives across Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool to inspect renovation efforts<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/4560206\/wes-moore-wouldnt-stop-underage-son-transitioning\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>Wes Moore says he wouldn\u2019t stop underage son from transitioning genders<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/4559876\/mark-hamill-deletes-photo-depicting-dead-trump-after-assassination-attempt\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>Mark Hamill deletes photo depicting dead Trump after assassination attempt<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p>\u201cThe Mass Termination is DECLARED unlawful, unconstitutional, ultra vires, and without legal effect,\u201d <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.historians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/291-Memo-opinion.pdf\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">wrote<\/a> Judge McMahon, according to the official court documents. The termination of National Endowment for the Humanities grants challenged in this action was unlawful because it was undertaken in violation of the First Amendment, in violation of the equal protection component of the Fifth Amendment, and without statutory authority.\u201d <\/p>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>\u201cThe Court further DECLARES that DOGE officials lacked statutory authority to identify, select, or direct the termination of NEH grants, and that the resulting terminations were <em>ultra vires,<\/em>\u201d she added.<em> <\/em><\/p>\n<p>McMahon also wrote that ending the grants based on \u201cperceived viewpoint\u201d interpretations was a violation of \u201cprotected expression.\u201d She scolded the DOGE-authorized cuts for using computer programs and artificial intelligence to determine what grants to cut, and that DOGE \u201cblatantly used protected characteristics as criteria for grant termination,\u201d reported ABC News.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat mattered to DOGE was not whether a grant lacked scholarly merit, failed to comply with its terms, or fell outside NEH\u2019s (National Endowment for the \u200bHumanities) statutory purposes,\u201d <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/legal\/government\/us-judge-rules-humanities-grant-terminations-by-doge-were-unlawful-2026-05-08\/\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">wrote<\/a> McMahon. \u201cWhat mattered was that the grant concerned a \u2018minority group.&#8217;\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDOGE swept \u200bin race and ethnicity \u2013 including grants concerning Black, Asian, Latino, and Indigenous communities \u2013 as well as national origin \u200cand immigration \u2060status; religion and religious identity (including Jewish, Christian, and Muslim subjects); sex; and sexual orientation, as criteria for grant termination,\u201d <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/legal\/government\/us-judge-rules-humanities-grant-terminations-by-doge-were-unlawful-2026-05-08\/\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">said<\/a> McMahon.<\/p>\n<p>President Donald Trump issued an executive order, \u201cEstablishing and Implementing the President\u2019s Department of Government Efficiency,\u201d on Jan. 20, 2025, the first day of his second term. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis Executive Order establishes the Department of Government Efficiency to implement the President\u2019s DOGE Agenda, by modernizing Federal technology and software to maximize governmental efficiency and productivity,\u201d <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.whitehouse.gov\/presidential-actions\/2025\/01\/establishing-and-implementing-the-presidents-department-of-government-efficiency\/\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">read<\/a> the directive. <\/p>\n<p>Trump also implemented efforts to remove what he deemed to be <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >left-wing mass indoctrination<\/a> in the form of race-based programs associated with DEI programs. DOGE was tasked with identifying such efforts in government spending and determining whether such programs should be eliminated. The grants were determined to be government spending initiatives that violated the Trump administration\u2019s initiatives.<\/p>\n<p>She reinforced that their decision to end those grants, while claiming it was to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/republicans-in-congress-look-to-stop-judicial-coup-detat\/\" title=\"Republicans In Congress Look To Stop &#039;Judicial Coup d&#039;etat&#039;\">reduce wasteful government spending<\/a>, was \u201cnot lawful.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTreating Black civil-rights history, Jewish testimony about the Holocaust, the oft-forgotten Asian American experience, the shameful treatment of the children of Native tribes, or the mere mention of a woman as a marker of lack of merit or wastefulness is not lawful,\u201d <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/abcnews.com\/Politics\/judge-doge-grant-terminations-unlawful-troubling\/story?id=132762412\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">wrote<\/a> McMahon. <\/p>\n<p><strong><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/policy\/defense\/4559981\/us-iran-attacks-navy-strait-of-hormuz\/\">TRUMP VOWS TO HIT IRAN \u2018MORE VIOLENTLY\u2019 IF DEAL NOT STRUCK AFTER STRAIT OF HORMUZ ATTACK<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Furthermore, McMahon declared that the government was \u201cpermanently enjoined\u201d from enforcing the grant cuts. She ordered that the government was required to provide \u201cwritten notice\u201d of her decision to all affected by the grant terminations. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Government, along with its officers, agents, servants, employees, and all persons acting in concert with them, is permanently enjoined from enforcing, implementing, or giving any effect to the Mass Termination,\u201d McMahon <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.historians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/291-Memo-opinion.pdf\">said<\/a>. \u201cThis injunction applies to all termination notices issued as part of the Mass Termination.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Government shall provide written notice of this Opinion and Order to all affected grant recipients whose awards were terminated as part of the mass termination,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Judge says DOGE-ordered humanities grant cuts were unconstitutional<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2677,"featured_media":2600184,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/AP25113826769744.jpg?w=696","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[23466,38298,45995,33332,59177],"class_list":["post-2600183","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-doge","tag-federal-court","tag-fifth-amendment","tag-first-amendment","tag-grant-cuts"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/AP25113826769744.jpg?w=696","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2600183","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2677"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2600183"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2600183\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2600187,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2600183\/revisions\/2600187"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2600184"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2600183"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2600183"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2600183"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}