CITIZENS NEWS

NASA, State Dept. admit to renaming DEI programs to dodge Trump’s ban in undercover sting

By isabelle // 2025-04-03

• Project Veritas exposed NASA and State Department employees circumventing Trump’s DEI bans by rebranding programs.
• A State Department officer admitted renaming DEI initiatives to evade scrutiny, vowing to repeat the tactic.
• A NASA scientist revealed renaming "climate change" research to "natural hazards" to secure funding.
• NASA spent $13 million on DEI under Biden, diverting funds from critical missions.
• The footage confirms conservative fears of bureaucratic defiance against executive orders.

Project Veritas has exposed federal employees at NASA and the State Department openly admitting to circumventing President Donald Trump’s executive orders banning Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs. The footage, released this week, reveals a culture of deliberate insubordination, with career bureaucrats boasting about rebranding prohibited initiatives to keep them alive—proving that even in the face of clear policy shifts, the federal bureaucracy is determined to resist. The bombshell footage captures State Department Foreign Service Officer Anthony Abate candidly explaining how employees simply relabeled DEI programs to evade scrutiny. "They canceled DEI stuff, but people just did it and called it something else," Abate said. "Work around the rules. Just change the word, but it means the same thing." When asked if the tactic would be repeated under a potential second Trump term, Abate smirked, "We’ll probably do the same thing again." Meanwhile, at NASA, climate scientist Renato Braghiere admitted that politically charged research on "climate change" was being rebranded as "natural hazards" to secure funding. "They don’t like that term, they don’t believe that, and they’re probably not going to fund any of that," Braghiere said. "We can change the term to... 'natural hazards' or something like that." The revelations confirm long-standing conservative suspicions that the federal bureaucracy, emboldened by progressive ideology, is actively undermining lawful executive orders. The footage also raises serious questions about fiscal responsibility, as NASA spent a staggering $13 million on DEI initiatives under President Biden—money that could have been directed toward critical missions, not political activism.

A culture of defiance in the federal workforce

President Trump’s executive orders, signed at the start of his second term, explicitly banned the use of federal funds for DEI programs, calling them "discriminatory" and "divisive." The orders also prohibited training that promotes race or sex-based stereotyping, a move the administration framed as a return to merit-based governance. Yet, as the undercover footage shows, federal employees have no intention of complying. Abate’s admission that the State Department rebranded DEI as "multicultural activities" or "team building" is a textbook example of bureaucratic deception. His confidence that the same tactics would be reused under the Trump administration underscores a troubling reality: Many career officials believe they, not elected leaders, should dictate policy. At NASA, the rebranding extends beyond DEI. Braghiere’s comments reveal that even scientific terminology is being manipulated to align with political agendas. By swapping "climate change" for "natural hazards," researchers ensure their work remains funded, even as the administration shifts priorities.

Waste, fraud, and abuse in federal spending

The Project Veritas exposé comes as watchdog groups highlight the exorbitant costs of DEI programs. Under Biden, NASA funneled millions into diversity initiatives while mission-critical projects, like Boeing’s Starliner capsule, suffered catastrophic failures. A recent OpenTheBooks report found that NASA spent over $13 million on DEI, including contracts for consultants to "deeply engrain" equity policies into the agency’s culture. "Newtonian physics and atmospheric reentry do not care about antiracism talks and gender ‘affirmation’ policies," said John Hart, CEO of OpenTheBooks. "NASA has an opportunity to take one small step toward fiscal responsibility and one giant leap toward common sense." Trump’s administration has already begun dismantling DEI offices, but the Project Veritas footage suggests the battle is far from over. The footage is a wake-up call: If federal employees are willing to deceive to preserve their pet projects, stronger oversight is needed to enforce accountability. The undercover sting by Project Veritas is more than an exposé—it’s a damning indictment of a federal bureaucracy that views itself as above elected leadership. By openly flouting executive orders, renaming programs, and disguising political activism as neutral policy, these employees are engaging in a quiet rebellion against the voters who put Trump in office. The footage raises urgent questions: How much taxpayer money is being wasted on rebranded DEI programs? How many more federal employees are gaming the system? And most importantly, will the administration take decisive action to root out this institutional defiance? Sources for this article include: YourNews.com ProjectVeritas.com FoxNews.com

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