Trump Action Archive

Supporting reports

• White House issues press release misrepresenting Tylenol-autism research — The White House released a press release linking to scientific studies to support Trump's claim that acetaminophen (Tylenol) use during pregnancy causes autism. Medical experts found the studies provided only "weak" and "inconclusive" evidence. The release duplicated citations to create a false appearance of multiple independent confirmations, misrepresented study findings (claiming biological mechanisms were established when authors stated mechanisms remain unknown), and omitted contradictory research, including a large Swedish study showing associations disappear under rigorous sibling-control analysis.

Supporting reports

• US Department of Energy directs employees to avoid climate-related terminology — The US Department of Energy's Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) issued guidance to employees instructing them to avoid using terms including "climate change," "decarbonization," "sustainable," "emissions," "green," "energy transition," and "carbon footprint" in internal and public-facing work. The directive, contained in an email from an acting director, applies to all staff regardless of role. This follows the Trump administration's broader effort to suppress climate-related language across federal agencies and its cuts to renewable energy funding.

Supporting reports

• Trump posted medical advice contradicting expert guidance on vaccines — President Trump posted on social media in capital letters advising pregnant women and parents to avoid Tylenol, separate MMR vaccines into three shots, and space out other vaccines across five separate medical visits. Trump acknowledged the advice came from his appointed secretary of health and human services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who is neither a doctor nor a scientist. Medical experts note that the MMR vaccine is not available in three separate shots.

Supporting reports

• USDA cancels food insecurity survey — The Trump administration's Agriculture Department announced it is canceling an annual government survey conducted since the mid-1990s that measures food insecurity in the US. A department spokesperson claimed the survey "became overly politicized" and is "unnecessary," despite the survey being used to make funding decisions for food assistance programs. The final report including 2024 results is expected to be released on October 22.
• USDA places food insecurity researchers on leave — The Agriculture Department placed roughly a dozen employees responsible for economic research and the government's food insecurity survey on leave, two days after canceling the annual food insecurity survey.

Supporting reports

• Harvard dean paid to discredit Tylenol safety research — The New York Times reported that Dr. Andrea Baccarelli, the Harvard dean who consulted with top Trump health officials about unproven risks related to Tylenol use during pregnancy, was paid at least $150,000 to be an expert witness for plaintiffs in lawsuits against the drug maker. The judge who dismissed the lawsuits agreed with defendants' lawyers that Baccarelli "cherry-picked and misrepresented study results" in his testimony, making him an "unreliable" witness.