Donald Trump sparked controversy during his address to a joint session of Congress this week, claiming that the Biden administration spent $8 million on “making mice transgender.”
In his 99-minute speech on Tuesday, Trump criticized what he called “appalling waste” of taxpayer dollars under President Joe Biden’s leadership. He specifically mentioned a report by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), a government cost-cutting team headed by billionaire Elon Musk, which allegedly identified the spending on “making mice transgender.” Trump asserted, “This is real,” drawing laughter from his Republican colleagues.
However, critics quickly rebutted his claim, clarifying that the $8 million in question was allocated for health studies involving transgenic mice, not transgender mice. These studies focused on testing treatments to understand their potential effects on human health.
Transgenic mice are genetically modified animals with foreign DNA inserted into their genomes. This modification is typically used to study specific genes, model human diseases, or test potential treatments.
Later, the White House reinforced Trump’s statement, claiming that the National Institutes of Health (NIH) spent millions under the Biden administration on what it referred to as “transgender experiments on mice.” Citing examples, the White House stated that over $8.2 million had been spent, including $455,000 for a study examining how an HIV vaccine works in mice that had undergone cross-sex hormone therapy. Additionally, the National Cancer Institute allocated $299,940 to a project studying breast cancer rates in female mice versus those receiving testosterone therapy.
Other studies mentioned by the White House included:
- $3.1 million for researching the impact of hormones on asthma outcomes.
- $2.5 million to study the reproductive consequences of steroid hormone administration.
- $1.2 million on research into androgen effects on reproductive neuroendocrine systems.
- $735,113 for a project examining how gender-affirming hormone therapy affects the microbiome in mice.
Despite the White House’s claims, none of these studies involved physically transitioning mice from one gender to another. Instead, they focused on understanding the effects of hormones on various health issues, including disease, reproductive health, and immune responses.
