On February 21, 2025, U.S. President Donald Trump was at the White House as Howard Lutnick was officially sworn in as the new Secretary of Commerce. The ceremony took place in the Oval Office and was led by Vice President JD Vance.
That same week, President Trump announced that his administration would shut down the Digital Equity Act.
This program, which had been created during Joe Biden’s presidency, set aside \$2.5 billion in government funding to help ensure that everyone in the country had equal access to the internet and the opportunities it brings.
The law aimed to help people who are often left behind in the digital world including older adults, veterans, people in prison, those with disabilities, people living in rural areas, non-English speakers, and members of minority communities.
Trump explained his decision in a post on the social media platform Truth Social. He said he had spoken with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and that they both agreed the program was unconstitutional.
Trump claimed that the program was unfair because it gave special treatment to people based on their race, and he referred to it as a “woke handout.”
He went further, calling the entire \$2.5 billion initiative a racist and illegal waste of money. Trump said he would cancel it immediately and claimed that doing so would save taxpayers billions.
Before it was removed from the government’s website, information about the program stated that many communities still do not have access to fast internet.
Others might not be able to afford it or might not know how to use it. The site had explained that these gaps in digital access were creating inequality in the economy and that affordable, reliable internet should be available to everyone in order to close that gap.
