Why do you think Donald Trump is against science? originally appeared on Quora, the place to gain and share knowledge, empowering people to learn from others and better understand the world. You can follow Quora on Twitter, Facebook, and Google Plus.

First, ask “Is Donald Trump against science?” Then ask “Why?”

He wants to cut funding to: EPA, NASA, NOAA, CDC, FDA, NSF, and more, evidenced by his proposed budget.

He claims global climate change is a hoax, and surrounds himself with people who believe the same.

Orders have come down from the White House and Trump-appointed department secretaries to remove all reference to climate change from websites.

He has pulled the US from the Paris Accord.

The White House Office of Science and Technology is empty. Totally. Gone with the wind…

The NASA website mission statement has been changed to remove “extend human knowledge” as one of their missions.

Word is that NSF grant proposals are being run past a “political officer”, and lower-level grants reviewers have advised grant applicants to remove any reference to climate influence from their research.

So: my conclusion is that, yes, he is against science funding from the government. I don’t know whether he’s “against” science in general. But…

I think he looks at “science” as something elitist and with no return on investment. He has bought into a stereotype of science as having no practical application, and scientists as being airy-fairy heads-in-the-sky types. He seems to think government science grants are a scam (perhaps projection on his part?) I believe he is much more interested in making money, and having big corporations make money. Corporate executives have told him that EPA regulations cost them money; ergo, out go the regulations. Climate scientists are only into it for the grant money, therefore, get rid of climate science. He thinks corporations should fund science, not government.

The scientists I follow on Twitter and blogs are all aghast. The overall feeling is that the US is going to fall further and further behind on basic and advanced science research, and the technological, medical, and social applications based on it. Macron, France’s president, has offered full four-year funding of research for any scientists willing to move there.

Also, a large number of scientists and medical people in the US are foreigners, here on green cards. The muddled ban on Muslims/people from particular countries, and the haphazard way the customs and immigration folk are applying the new rules to travelers, have made many scientists decide to not come to the US. Professional societies are planning to move conferences to other countries, because they are worried that scientists either won’t be allowed in to the US to attend, or will be detained.

Additionally, the number of foreign students applying to US grad schools has plummeted. Those universities will be seeing a huge revenue drop as a result (out-of-country tuition is big!)

This is a huge mess. I just hope that Trump’s sudden in-depth education about hurricanes and the damage they cause will at least make him realize how important all those satellites studying the earth sciences are. Maybe someone among his coterie has managed to get through to him that the Weather Channel does not have satellites, but relies on NASA and NOAA for the weather information…

This question originally appeared on Quora. More questions on Quora:

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