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Connecticut Attorney General William Tong today joined a coalition of 20 other attorneys general in suing the Trump administration to stop the Trump Administration's cost cutting efforts. It's his second lawfare announcement of the day.

This time Tong is upset about Trump's Executive Order on "Continuing the Reduction of the Federal Bureaucracy" which aims to dramatically reduce the size of the Federal Government, while increasing its accountability to the American people.

Tong's statement said the Executive Order caused the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) to place almost its entire staff on administrative leave. The lawsuit filed by Tong and the coalition seeks to stop the "targeted destruction of the IMLS and two other agencies targeted in the administration’s EO that millions of Americans rely on."

“We are back in court yet again today to block the latest in this never-ending torrent of illegal attacks on our families and workers.  We had to sue to stop Trump from defunding our schools and cancer cures, from defunding energy assistance and vaccines, from defunding disaster relief and the police. Now, we have to sue again to stop him from defunding summer reading programs and audiobooks for disabled veterans. This is more lawless and needless hurt inflicted on Connecticut families and workers, and we’re fighting back with everything we’ve got,” said Attorney General Tong.

"This Executive Order is the administration’s latest attempt to dismantle federal agencies in defiance of Congress," the statement said. Tong and the coalition are seeking to stop the dismantling of three agencies cited in the administration’s Executive Order:

1. The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS);
2. The Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA); and
3. The Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS).

Tong and the coalition assert in the lawsuit that "dismantling these agencies will have devastating effects on communities throughout Connecticut and the nation that rely on them to provide important services to the public, including funding their libraries, promoting minority-owned businesses, and protecting workers’ rights."

In 2024, IMLS invested $180 million in libraries nationwide under its Grants to States Program. The Connecticut State Library receives $2.2 million in annual funding from IMLS, supporting variety of programming, including professional development books like "Media Literacy for Justice" and "Let's Talk About Race in Storytimes."

That's probably because IMLS thinks libraries should play a role in promoting racial equity and inclusion to create a more equitable country.

In addition, the Trump administration cut the staff of MBDA from 40 to five individuals and has effectively stopped issuing new grants. The FMCS slashed its staff from roughly 200 to fewer than 15 individuals and announced the termination of several of its core programs, "making it harder for unionized workers to secure their rights."

Tong and the coalition argue that the Executive Order violates the Constitution and the Administrative Procedure Act by "eliminating the programs of agencies without any regard for the laws and regulations that govern each source of federal funding."

The coalition argues that the President cannot decide to "unilaterally override laws governing federal spending, and that this Executive Order unconstitutionally overrides Congress’s power to decide how federal funds are spent."

This lawsuit is led by the attorneys general of New York, Rhode Island, and Hawaii. Joining the lawsuit are the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Vermont, Washington, and Wisconsin. 

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