Category: usa news today

Crossword Blog & Answers for May 1, 2025 by Sally Hoelscher
There are spoilers ahead. You might want to solve today’s puzzle before reading further! TV Sets
Constructor: Michael Berg

Editor: Jared Goudsmit

Comments from Today’s Crossword Constructor

Michael: Happy May Day everyone! In lieu of a maypole dance, I offer you this puzzle. I hope when you finish it you can say to yourself, “I’m good enough, I’m smart enough, and doggone it, people like me.”

What I Learned from Today’s Puzzle

TATUM (63A: Celtics player Jayson) Jayson TATUM has played basketball for the Boston Celtics since 2025. The Celtics won the NBA Championship last year. Jayson TATUM was also on the gold-medal winning Team USA at the 2020 and 2024 Summer Olympics. Add Jayson TATUM to the sports figures I’ve learned about from solving crosswords.

KIM CHI (38D: “RuPaul’s Drag Race” contestant named after a Korean dish) KIM CHI competed on the eighth season of RuPaul’s Drag Race, and was the first Korean American contestant on the show. Although I wasn’t familiar with KIM CHI, the “Korean dish” hint in the clue helped me figure out the answer.

Random Thoughts & Interesting Things

CACTI (9A: Spiny plants in Joshua Tree National Park) Joshua Tree National Park in southern California encompasses two deserts, the Mojave Desert and the Colorado Desert. As one might expect for a park with a desert ecosystem, there are multiple types of CACTI in the park. One type of cactus in the park is the teddy-bear cholla. Although this cactus looks soft – thus its name – it’s not a good idea to touch it. In one area of the park where there is a high concentration of these CACTI, multiple signs warn, “Unless you are a cactus wren, be careful as you walk the trail not to brush against the cholla cactus. The slightest touch can cause the cactus spines to penetrate your skin. Removing the embedded spines is difficult and painful.” When my husband and I were in Joshua Tree National Park, we definitely heeded these warnings!

SIR (23A: Lancelot’s title) SIR Lancelot was a knight in Arthurian legend.

NEURON (25A: Cell with dendrites) NEURONs are the cells that make up the nervous system. These excitable cells use electric signals, conducted through long slender projections known as axons and dendrites, to communicate with other cells. Hooray for science in the crossword!

TEA (39A: Genmaicha or pekoe) Genmaicha is a Japanese TEA made of green tea mixed with roasted brown rice. Pekoe is a term used in grading black TEA based on the size of the TEA leaves. The term “orange pekoe” is sometimes used as a generic term for black TEA (which, interestingly, is not orange in color or flavor).

FBI (43A: _ederal _ureau of _nvestigation) In this kind of fill-in-the-blank clue, each blank corresponds to one letter. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is an agency of the U.S. Department of Justice.

UVA (58A: Charlottesville sch.) The University of Virginia (UVA) is located in Charlottesville, Virginia. UVA alumni include Katie Couric and Tina Fey.

WARRIOR (2D: Virabhadrasana aka ___ pose) In yoga, WARRIOR pose, also known as Virabhadrasana, refers to a group of standing poses that build strength in the legs, spine, and torso.

UBER (7D: Rideshare company with a German name) UBER, founded in 2009, is currently the largest ridesharing company worldwide. In German, the word ÜBER has multiple meanings, including “over” or “above.”

CANOE (9D: Innu boat) The Innu are Indigenous Canadians living in the eastern part of the country in the present-day province of Newfoundland and Labrador. Historically, the CANOE was a principal means of transportation for the Innu.

CIA (11D: Spy org. in “Argo”) The 2012 movie, Argo, is a historical drama that tells the story of a CIA (Central Intelligence Agency) agent named Tony Mendez (portrayed by Ben Affleck), who led the rescue of six U.S. diplomats from Iran under the guise of filming a science fiction movie. Argo was adapted from Tony Mendez’s 1999 memoir, The Master of Disguise, and a 2007 Wired article by Joshuah Bearman titled, “The Great Escape: How the CIA Used a Fake Sci-Fi Flick to Rescue Americans from Tehran.” Argo won three Academy Awards: Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Film Editing.

TAR (12D: La Brea goop) Hancock Park in Los Angeles, California was formed around the La Brea TAR Pits. For tens of thousands of years, natural asphalt has seeped up from the ground in this area. The TAR preserved the bones of animals unlucky enough to get caught in the pits centuries ago.

RATATOUILLE (26D: Pixar film with the line “Anyone can cook!”) and EGO (30D: Anton ___ (26-Down critic)) RATATOUILLE is Pixar’s 2007 animated movie about Remy, a rat who possesses a heightened sense of taste and smell, and who dreams of becoming a chef. In the movie, Anton EGO is a cynical food critic.

NSA (28D: Intelligence org. in the film “Enemy of the State”) Enemy of the State is a 1998 movie starring Will Smith as a lawyer who unsuspectingly ends up in possession of a video exposing the NSA’s (National Security Agency’s) involvement in the murder of a congressman. I notice this puzzle contains FBI, CIA, and NSA … just making an observation.

SATURN (49D: Rhea’s planet) Rhea is the second-largest moon of SATURN. The number of confirmed moons orbiting SATURN is currently 274, following the recent confirmation of an additional 128 moons.

OVENS (57D: Tandoors, etc.) and NAAN (60D: Tandoori bread) Tandoors are cylindrical OVENS made of clay or metal. Flatbreads such as NAAN are sometimes baked in tandoors.

ELMO (61D: Muppet with a pet goldfish) ELMO’s pet goldfish is named Dorothy.

TAP (63D: Dance like Savion Glover) Savion Glover is a TAP dancer, actor, and choreographer. He won a Tony Award for his choreography of the 1996 Broadway musical, Bring in ‘da Noise, Bring in ‘da Funk.

A few other answers I particularly enjoyed seeing in the grid:

DYNAMO (54A: Energetic person)

AFFIRMATION (3D: “I am enough,” e.g.)

DRAGON (36D: Mythical creature associated with Chinese New Year)

Crossword Puzzle Theme Synopsis

TRIAL VERSION (20A: Demo product)

TOURIST VISA (40A: World traveler’s document)

TUNNEL VISION (59A: Single-minded concentration)

TV SETS: Each theme answer has the initials TV: TRIAL VERSION, TOURIST VISA, and TUNNEL VISION.

TV SETS (the kind you can watch shows on) are ubiquitous, so it was fun to see different things that could, theoretically, be referred to as TV SETS. My favorite theme answer here is TUNNEL VISION; that was a great find. Thank you, Michael, for this enjoyable puzzle.

For more on USA TODAY’s Crossword Puzzles
May 1, 2025
Harris warns of ‘constitutional crisis’ in sharp critique of Trump

Former Vice President Kamala Harris on April 30 criticized President Donald Trump’s approach to the economy and warned of a constitutional crisis in her sharpest rebuke of the president since leaving the White House in January.

“Instead of an administration working to advance America’s highest ideals, we are witnessing the wholesale abandonment of those ideals,” Harris said in San Francisco during an address at the 20th anniversary gala for Emerge America. The organization recruits and trains Democratic women to run for office.

Harris, whose remarks came just one day after Trump marked his 100th day in office, said the new administration is trying to sow fear in Americans.

But in the face of fear comes courage, she said.

“The courage of Americans who are banding together in the face of the greatest man-made economic crisis in modern presidential history,” she said. “Americans across the political spectrum who are declaring that the President’s reckless tariffs hurt workers and families by raising the cost of everyday essentials.”

As a result of Trump’s on-again off-again tariffs, markets have see-sawed and consumer confidence has dropped. It all came to a head Wednesday when data from the Commerce Department showed the economy had its worst quarter in three years.

Trump pushed the blame onto former President Joe Biden, Harris’ one-time boss, saying there will be a “boom” to the economy once his tariffs kick in.

But Harris, who lost in the 2024 presidential election after taking over from Biden, said she predicted that Trump’s tariffs are “clearly inviting a recession.”

The former vice president also warned that checks and balances that the United States has historically relied on “have begun to buckle.” Congress and the courts must do their parts to protect that balance, Harris said. But if the president defies them, it is the start of serious problems, she said.

“Friends, that is called a constitutional crisis,” she said. “And that is a crisis that will eventually impact everyone because it would mean that the rules that protect our fundamental rights and freedoms that ensure each of us has a say about how our government works will no longer matter.”

While she’s reportedly weighing her next move in politics, whether running for president a third time or campaign to be the next California governor, Harris warned Americans that things are probably “going to get worse before they get better.”

“Please always remember this country is ours,” she said. “It doesn’t belong to whoever is in the White House. It belongs to you.”

May 1, 2025
Bodies of 2 teens, 12-year-old girl found in Nebraska’s Missouri River

The bodies of two teenagers and a 12-year-old girl have been found in the Missouri River in Omaha, Nebraska, following a two-week search.

The bodies of 18-year-olds Laiana Green and Lah Tray Moo, and 12-year-old Eh Cress Moo were all recovered from the Missouri River as of April 29, the Omaha Fire Department confirmed on Facebook on Wednesday.

Laiana, Lah and Eh went missing on April 15 while fishing at N.P. Dodge Park recreational area in Omaha, according to local stations KETV and WOWT.

A witness said they saw four girls fishing when one of the girls slipped into the river and the others went in to rescue her, WOWT reported. Only one of them, a 13-year-old girl, managed to avoid being swept away and safely returned to shore, according to the station and her family.

Officials found Lah’s body on the night of April 26 and later found Laiana and Eh the morning of April 29, the fire department said.

“We extend our deepest and most heartfelt condolences to the families and friends of these girls,” the department wrote on Facebook. “The loss of these young lives has touched our entire community, and our hearts continue to be with you now and in the days ahead.”

USA TODAY has reached out to the Omaha Fire Department for additional information.

Families of victims lean on each other

Laiana’s aunt, Nichelle Griffy, said her family feels relief the search has ended despite the tragedy and the families are leaning one another, KMTV reported.

“We’re feeling relief that we have all three girls physically now. We’re sad but we’re thankful,” Griffy told KMTV, adding that they’re finding comfort in each other. “We are a community that is strengthening. The gain is … the support that we have for each other because we’re all sharing the same loss right now.”

A GoFundMe page for Laiana Green‘s family said that the 18-year-old, who went by the nicknames LaiLai or Pooh, “acted selflessly and bravely in a moment of chaos.” The page said it is seeking donations for funeral services and has raised over $3,000 as of April 30.

A separate GoFundMe page for Lah and Eh said that Lah was Eh’s aunt, and that the tragedy has been a nightmare for the family. The page, which is seeking financial support for funeral expenses, raised nearly $7,000 as of April 30.

The families of the victims are urging officials to improve safety measures such as adding more warning signs and enforcing lifejacket usage along the river, WOWT reported.

May 1, 2025
Trump acknowledges no mistakes amid falling economy, approval ratings
Trump’s comments came the same day the Commerce Department announced the economy shrank during the first three months of the year.
- Trump said ‘I don’t really believe I’ve made mistakes’ during the first 100 days of his second term in office.
WASHINGTON – Never mind the shrinking economy and dismal poll numbers.

President Donald Trump’s first 100 days have gone according to plan.

What would he do differently? Not a thing.

“I’ll tell you, that’s the toughest question I can have because I don’t really believe I’ve made mistakes,” Trump said in reply to a question at a NewsNation town hall on April 30. “We’re in a transition period. I think you’re going to see tremendous economic victories over the next period of a year.”

His comments came the same day as the Commerce Department reported the national economy − the total value of all goods and services in the country − shrank at an annual rate of 0.3% during the first three months of the year.

Trump blamed his predecessor, Joe Biden, in a post on social media. “This is Biden’s Stock Market, not Trump’s,” Trump wrote.

Stocks are down. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 were down 6% from Election Day, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq is down 11%.

A series of polls gauging Trump’s first 100 days of his second term reported an approval rating about 41% or 42%, with more than half the respondents disapproving of his policies.

Trump accused pollsters of calling more Democrats than Republicans, after predicting that he would lose Wisconsin and the 2024 presidential election – and then he won both.

“They’re fake polls,” Trump said.

Trump put his faith in import tariffs, which sparked a worldwide trade war. To curb the costs on domestic goods, Trump reduced some facets of the tariffs on cars and said he expects to reach a deal with China.

“We’re going to make billions and billions of dollars, but it takes a little while,” Trump said. “That doesn’t happen overnight, but it will happen much faster than people understand.”
May 1, 2025
Trump news at a glance: US and Ukraine sign long-awaited minerals deal; Noem doubles down on deportation threat | Trump administration

Ukraine and the US have signed a deal pushed by President Donald Trump that will give the US preferential access to Ukrainian mineral resources and fund investment in Ukraine’s reconstruction.

The accord establishes a joint investment fund for Ukraine’s reconstruction as Trump tries to secure a peace settlement in Russia’s three-year-old war in Ukraine.

After fraught negotiations, which almost collapsed at the last minute, the agreement is central to Kyiv’s efforts to mend ties with Trump and the White House, which frayed after he took office in January.

Here are the key stories at a glance:

US and Ukraine sign minerals deal after months of negotiations

The US and Kyiv have signed an agreement to share revenues from the future sale of Ukrainian minerals and rare earths, sealing a deal that Donald Trump has said will provide an economic incentive for the US to continue to invest in Ukraine’s defense and its reconstruction after he brokers a peace deal with Russia.

_{Read the full story}

Kristi Noem says Ábrego García would be deported if returned to US

Kristi Noem, the US homeland security secretary, said that if Kilmar Ábrego García was sent back to the US, the Trump administration “would immediately deport him again.” Ábrego García is a Salvadorian man who the Trump administration has admitted was mistakenly deported from Maryland last month. Noem’s comments come as a federal judge again directed the Trump administration to provide information about its efforts so far, if any, to comply with her order to retrieve Ábrego García from an El Salvador prison.

_{Read the full story}

Behind the scenes, the Trump administration has been in touch directly with the Salvadorian president Nayib Bukele in recent days about the detention of Kilmar Ábrego García, the man wrongly deported to a notorious prison in El Salvador, according to two people familiar with the matter.

The nature of the discussion and its purpose was not clear because multiple Trump officials have said the administration was not interested in his coming back.

_{Read the full story}

Trump pressures journalist to accept doctored photo as real

Donald Trump lashed out at an ABC journalist in a tense TV interview to mark 100 days of his second term in office, in which among other confrontations he angrily pushed correspondent Terry Moran to agree with him that a doctored photo was actually real, telling him: “Why don’t you just say yes.”

_{Read the full story}

US economy shrinks in first quarter of Trump 2.0

The US economy shrank in the first three months of the year, according to official data, triggering fears of an American recession and a global economic slowdown. Donald Trump, who returned to the White House promising to “make America great again”, sought to blame Joe Biden for the figure.

_{Read the full story}

US supreme court open to religious public charter schools

The US supreme court’s conservative majority seemed open to establishing the country’s first public religious charter school as they weighed a case that could have significant ramifications on the separation of church and state.

_{Read the full story}

Columbia student freed after federal judge orders release

Mohsen Mahdawi walked out of immigration detention after a federal judge in Vermont ordered his release. The Palestinian green-card holder and student at Columbia University had been detained and ordered deported by the Trump administration on 14 April despite not being charged with a crime.

_{Read the full story}

What else happened today:

Catching up? Here’s what happened on 29 April 2025.

May 1, 2025
Senate rebuke on President Donald Trump’s tariffs narrowly fails

WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump narrowly avoided a rebuke from the U.S. Senate on his tariffs due to one Democratic senator’s absence.

The resolution, defeated with a 49-49 tie on April 30, reflects discontent with Trump’s 10% across-the-board tariffs and now-paused “retaliatory” tariffs that rattled Wall Street and contributed to a shrinking GDP as four Republicans joined with all present Democrats in supporting it.

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I. and Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., both missed the vote but had intended to vote for the resolution.

However, the resolution is symbolic: The White House said in a statement on Monday that it would “undermine the administration’s efforts to address the unusual and extraordinary threats to national security and economic stability,” and said Trump would veto it.

Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., co-sponsored the resolution with Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and five other Democrats. It would end the president’s sweeping tariffs by eliminating the national emergency Trump used to justify them.

“If Americans are to live in a country where the president alone decides what is to be taxed at what rate and for how long, it will be because Congress is too feeble to stand up for the interest and bank accounts of the people,” Paul said in a speech on the Senate floor Wednesday.

All Democrats and two other Republicans supported the effort: Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska. Collins, Murkowski and McConnell also joined Paul and Democrats in supporting another resolution earlier this month to eliminate Trump’s tariffs on Canada.

“It is not perfect. I think it’s too broad,” Collins told reporters Wednesday. “But it sends the message that I want to send: That we really need to be far more discriminatory in imposing these tariffs and not treat allies like Canada the way we treat adversaries like China.”

The administration has also threatened to veto other bipartisan proposals targeting his tariff policy: Sens. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., and Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, have introduced a bill that would give Congress more oversight of tariff policy.

The vote reflects some discomfort in the Senate Republican conference with the president’s tariffs, which have rattled stock markets and prompted a 0.3% contraction in the country’s gross domestic product announced Wednesday.

Many congressional Republicans would like to see fewer barriers to trade for the U.S. but have still expressed concerns about the policy’s economic impact. They have primarily urged patience as the administration negotiates with other countries to avoid the “retaliatory” tariffs that have been paused through early July.

Passing the bill “would signal to U.S. trading partners that they can continue to discriminate against U.S. exports with impunity and would signal that the United States is not serious about addressing structural imbalances in the global economy,” Senate Finance Committee Chairman Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, argued on the Senate floor Wednesday.

May 1, 2025
Canon U.S.A., Inc. Placed Among Country’s Best Customer
MELVILLE, N.Y., May 01, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Canon U.S.A., Inc., a leader in digital imaging solutions, was listed among the 600 companies recognized for offering the best customer service in America, according to USA TODAY and its research partner Plant-A Insights Group.

Canon earned 4 1/2 out of five stars in the Hardware, Electronics and Automobile industry category.¹ Canon is one of a select group of companies cited for delivering the best customer experience using a variety of measures, including public data and a large-scale confidential online survey conducted among U.S. customers, according to the ranking’s methodology.

More than 67,000 customers offered insights to USA TODAY across seven key categories of customer service treatment, including friendliness and appreciation of customers; professional competence; customer service; availability and accessibility; solution speed; solution orientation; and transparency and reliability.

“Customer service is a core part of our business, and we appreciate the recognition by USA Today that Canon U.S.A. ranks among the best in the country,” said Kiyoshi Oka, executive vice president and general manager, Marketing Strategy Unit. “This honor is a testament to the collective efforts and commitment of those who work in customer service and reflects our ongoing commitment to deliver outstanding support.”

Canon U.S.A., Inc. remains steadfast in its commitment to providing best-in-class service and support, empowering customers and channel partners alike while continuously raising the bar for industry standards.

About Canon U.S.A., Inc.

Canon U.S.A., Inc. is a leading provider of consumer, business-to-business, and industrial digital imaging solutions to the United States, Latin America, and the Caribbean markets. With approximately $28.5 billion in global revenue, its parent company, Canon Inc., as of 2024 has ranked in the top-10 for U.S. patents granted for 41 consecutive years.^† Canon U.S.A. is dedicated to its Kyosei philosophy of social and environmental responsibility. To learn more about Canon, visit www.usa.canon.com and connect with us on LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/company/canonusa.

† Based on patent counts issued by the United States Patent and Trademark Office and compiled by IFI CLAIMS Patent Services.

¹ USA TODAY’s “America’s BEST Customer Service 2025” recognizes the service providers, brick and mortar, and online retailers in the United States that provide the best customer service, based on a range of relevant metrics from the perspective of customers. The study involved an assessment of publicly accessible data and a large-scale confidential online survey conducted among U.S. customers.
- America’s Best Customer Service
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May 1, 2025
U.S. and Ukraine sign long-awaited minerals deal to repay aid

A few weeks ago, the chances of the Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy administrations signing such a deal looked slim. When the Ukrainian president visited Washington in February to discuss and possibly sign the agreement, long-standing personal tensions with Trump exploded into the open in an extraordinary public argument also involving Vice President JD Vance.

Trump suggested Wednesday that the pair’s relationship had improved since then, characterizing the meeting as “beautiful” and expressing confidence that Zelenskyy “wants to make a deal” to end the war.”

Trump said Wednesday that the agreement would serve as an avenue for the U.S. to recoup funds it has provided to Ukraine throughout its war with Russia, a figure the State Department has placed at $66.5 billion in terms of military assistance.

Since beginning his second term just more than 100 days ago, Trump has repeatedly insisted that the U.S. be repaid for at least part of the aid that Washington has sent to Ukraine to help it fight Russia’s three-year-long invasion.

Speaking to Fox News on Thursday, U.S. national security adviser Mike Waltz said the deal “is good for the American taxpayer that is recouping the billions of dollars that we’ve put into supporting Ukraine. It’s good for Ukraine and helping it grow and helping it grow the pie in terms of its development and reconstruction, and it’s good for its security.”

It is unclear how much of the money will go toward repaying the U.S. Svyrydenko said in her post that the agreement “includes no provisions regarding any Ukrainian debt obligations to the United States.”

Despite accusations of treating Moscow more leniently than Kyiv in protracted peace talks with both parties, Trump’s ire has recently been directed at Russian President Vladimir Putin, whom he criticized for carrying out widespread strikes on Kyiv despite U.S. officials’ ongoing ceasefire efforts.

While Putin on Monday announced a temporary ceasefire due to begin next week, there are few signs that he is planning a more long-term cessation in military activity.

Russian strikes on the Ukrainian port city of Odessa overnight Wednesday killed two people and injured 15 more, Ukraine’s State Emergency Service said in a post Thursday on Telegram.

Even so, the minerals deal is a step in the right direction as regards the chances of a more sustainable peace, Waltz said Thursday. “Both sides have to want peace. Both sides have to want to stop the fighting,” he said. “And we think there is still a deal to be had.”

April 30, 2025
Ukraine, US say they sign deal for joint investment fund

Tom Balmforth, Yuliia Dysa and Trevor Hunnicutt
| Reuters

KYIV/WASHINGTON – Ukraine and the U.S. said on Wednesday they signed an agreement on a joint fund to invest in Ukraine’s reconstruction, and a draft of the deal said it would give Washington preferential access to new Ukrainian natural resources deals.

The two countries signed the accord in Washington after months of sometimes fraught negotiations, with uncertainty persisting until the last-moment with word of an eleventh-hour snag.

“In recognition of the significant financial and material support that the people of the United States have provided to the defense of Ukraine since Russia’s full-scale invasion, this economic partnership positions our two countries to … accelerate Ukraine’s economic recovery,” the U.S. Treasury Department said.

A draft of the minerals agreement seen by Reuters gave the U.S. preferential access to new Ukrainian natural resources deals but did not automatically hand Washington a share of Ukraine’s mineral wealth or any of its gas infrastructure.

It provided for creation of a joint U.S.-Ukrainian fund for reconstruction which will receive 50% of profits and royalties accruing to the Ukrainian state from new natural resources permits in Ukraine.

April 30, 2025
Trump administration cancels $1B in mental health grants for schools

The grants, which supported hiring school psychologists and counselors, were funded by bipartisan legislation passed in the wake of the 2022 massacre at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas.

WASHINGTON – The Trump administration abruptly cancelled roughly $1 billion in federal grants aimed at helping schools hire and train therapists.

Hundreds of funding recipients across the country received letters April 29 from the U.S. Department of Education informing them that their mental health programs violated civil rights laws.

Some constituted an “inappropriate use of federal funds,” according to the letter.

“The grant is therefore inconsistent with, and no longer effectuates, the best interest of the Federal Government and will not be continued,” says the letter, which was signed by Murray Bessette, a senior advisor at the Education Department.

The Trump administration confirmed April 30 that it discontinued $1 billion in grants that supported school-based mental health programs. The grants ran afoul of their intended purpose, said Madi Biedermann, a spokesperson for the Education Department, and were part of the “deeply flawed priorities of the Biden administration.”

Specifically, the Trump administration took issue with programs for educating mental health professionals about systemic racism and training therapists to focus on race-related stress and trauma, among other things.

“We owe it to American families to ensure that taxpayer dollars are supporting evidence-based practices that are truly focused on improving students’ mental health,” Biedermann said in a statement.

Read more: Are school nurse jobs in jeopardy? As pandemic relief expires, some are worried

An April 29 notice from the Education Department‘s office of legislative affairs says the agency “plans to re-envision and re-compete its mental health program funds to more effectively support students’ behavioral health needs.”

The grants were funded through the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, a landmark gun safety law passed in the wake of a massacre three years ago in Uvalde, Texas, that left 19 elementary school students and two teachers dead.

Read more: The U.S. passed a landmark gun control deal. Is it working?

Mental health advocates denounced the cuts. Nancy Duchesneau, an education researcher at EdTrust, a left-leaning advocacy group, called the cancellations “irresponsible and cruel.”

Randi Weingarten, the president of the American Federation of Teachers, one of the nation’s largest teachers unions, warned that “school shootings will only multiply” if student mental health programs are wiped away.

“Really? Does this administration have to impose its ideological whims on everything?” she said in a statement, adding, “even, apparently, on bipartisan grants passed after the murder of students and educators in a school shooting.”

Zachary Schermele is an education reporter for USA TODAY. You can reach him by email at zschermele@usatoday.com. Follow him on X at @ZachSchermele and Bluesky at @zachschermele.bsky.social.

April 30, 2025