On February 11, 2026, attorneys general from California, Colorado, Illinois, and Minnesota filed a federal lawsuit in Illinois to block the Trump administration from terminating over $600 million in CDC public health grants, alleging political retaliation for the states’ opposition to immigration policies and sanctuary status.
The cuts target programs like HIV prevention, disease tracking, and health equity initiatives deemed “inconsistent” with agency priorities. Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker called it a “slap in the face” to public health, but nonetheless, the formerly huge grants to his state and others will run out by the end of the month.
Reacting to the situation, California Attorney General Bonta stated, “President Trump is resorting to a familiar playbook. He is using federal funding to compel states and jurisdictions to follow his agenda. Those efforts have all previously failed, and we expect that to happen once again.”
“Still, all Americans should be outraged. President Trump is not above the law, but he continues to act as if he is. My fellow attorneys general and I will not be silenced. We will continue taking him to court any time he takes unlawful actions,” the California official claimed in the fury-filled press release.
Addressing the situation as applied to his state in the press release, Illinois Governor JB Pritzker (D) asserted, “Rather than making life easier and more affordable for our families, Donald Trump is stripping critical public health funding with the singular goal of harming states he does not like.”
Still not done, the woke governor then raved, “It’s a slap in the face to the people of Illinois and the public health leaders who have stepped up as his HHS takes a sledgehammer to public health infrastructure. Illinois will not stand by idly as Trump illegally cancels the Congressionally-allocated funding we are owed.”
Supporting these comments, Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul also chimed in, and, doing so, inarticulately insisted, “The president is blatantly targeting states that are disfavored for political reasons, and our residents are the ones who will suffer.”
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“The programs that rely on this funding are in no way related to federal immigration law, and these arbitrary cuts will affect critical public health infrastructure in Illinois,” Raoul said, “I will continue to push back on the administration’s unlawful actions and policies particularly when it affects funding to prevent and treat life-threatening ailments, such as lead poisoning or HIV.”
Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) Director Dr. Sameer Vohra wrote, “These cuts target programs that benefit the health of all Illinois residents. These actions will severely harm IDPH programs that provide critical support to local health departments, decrease HIV rates, and promote injury and violence prevention, among other efforts.”
Rounding out the absurd statements, Minnesota Attorney General Ellison asserted, “Once again, the Trump administration is unlawfully trying to stop our own tax dollars from coming back to Minnesota to improve health and well-being across our state.”
Refusing to accept accountability, Ellison added, “These cuts only serve to continue Donald Trump’s campaign of revenge and retribution against the people of Minnesota, so I’m suing Trump to block them. Minnesotans can rest assured that I will do everything in my power to protect our state from the president’s efforts to inflict pain and suffering on the people he is supposed to serve.”
Watch Mayor Mamdani of New York lose it over Trump cutting his funding: