Attorney General Kwame Raoul, along with a coalition of 16 attorneys general, issued a joint statement before a court hearing in the case Commonwealth of Massachusetts v. National Institutes of Health. The hearing is set to address the plaintiffs' request for an extension of a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) against the Trump administration's proposed cuts to research funding.
Raoul and his colleagues from Arizona, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Nevada, Oregon, Vermont and Washington stated: "The Trump administration’s attempt to cut research funding at thousands of research institutions across the country is not only unlawful; it undermines public health, our economy and our competitiveness. There are laws in place that protect this funding and the president cannot simply toss those laws aside."
They emphasized that this funding supports essential components of biomedical research such as lab expenses and infrastructure costs. They warned that without it, significant research efforts would be compromised: "These cuts would have a devastating impact on universities around the country... They would force many universities to redirect funds and ultimately reduce research activities."
The attorneys general stressed their commitment: "Attorneys general are not just fighting for the rule of law; we are fighting for our loved ones... we will not allow President Trump to play politics with our public health." They noted that shortly after filing their lawsuit on February 10th against the Trump administration and related parties in U.S. District Court for Massachusetts, an emergency TRO was granted.
This legal action was co-led by Attorney General Raoul alongside Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell and Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel. Other states involved include Colorado, Maine, North Carolina and Rhode Island among others.