Top Democrat presses US budget chief on ceding scientific ground to Beijing

Cuts to federal research would weaken America’s scientific edge against Beijing, warned Raja Krishnamoorthi, the top Democrat on the US House committee focused on China, who is pressing budget chief Russ Vought on whether his office has assessed their impact.

“While the United States is dismantling the very foundations that have sustained our STEM and innovation leadership for generations, Beijing has announced its plans to continue accelerating its investments in science, technology, and innovation,” Krishnamoorthi wrote to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) director on Tuesday, according to a letter seen by the South China Morning Post.

The Illinois congressman, who serves as the ranking member of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, pointed to how federal funding for science research was estimated to fall by 22 per cent next year – from US$198 billion to US$154 billion – under Vought’s leadership. He also noted that the OMB has overseen firings, induced resignations or retirements for over 12,000 employees across science and research-focused agencies in recent months.

The White House’s budget plan calls for reductions of 57 per cent to the National Science Foundation (NSF), 47 per cent to Nasa’s science research and 39 per cent to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) – changes that Krishnamoorthi noted could ultimately shave over US$10 billion off US economic output.

China’s research and development expenditure, meanwhile, surpassed US$496 billion in 2024, a 48 per cent increase from 2020, Krishnamoorthi highlighted, citing recent statements made during the Communist Party’s fourth plenum, a recent national planning session. Beijing earlier this year also introduced a new “K” visa programme that allows young science and technology graduates to move to China without a job offer or sponsor – a fact that the congressman also emphasised.

Already, the cuts are having a “significant impact”, Krishnamoorthi said, referencing formerly US-based scientists who have joined Chinese research institutions this year.

  

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