President Donald Trump has revoked $4 billion in federal funding from California’s high-speed rail program, throwing the future of the largest infrastructure project in the U.S. into uncertainty.
Trump, who has been threatening to withdraw the funding since the beginning of his second term, made the announcement on Wednesday, branding the project a “boondoggle” that had been mismanaged by Democratic leaders in California.
The Context
California’s high-speed rail is in an awkward position. Years of delays and an inflated budget have damaged public and political faith in the project, but the past few years have seen progress—with construction happening throughout the state and tracklaying set to start later this year. To call off the project now, as many of its detractors in the White House desire, would waste years of advancement.
That has not stopped Trump, a long-standing critic of the project, from regularly threatening to take away the federal funding that has been vital to the project’s progress so far—a threat he and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy carried out on Wednesday.
What To Know
In a statement on July 16, Trump said he would be “freeing” taxpayers from having to give money to support the project.
At the same time, Duffy confirmed that $4 billion of federal funds had been revoked, saying the government had already spent $15 billion over a 16-year period.
“To the Law abiding, Tax paying, Hardworking Citizens of the United States of America, I am thrilled to announce that I have officially freed you from funding California’s disastrously overpriced, ‘HIGH SPEED TRAIN TO NOWHERE,'” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
He continued: “This boondoggle, led by the incompetent Governor of California, Gavin Newscum, has cost Taxpayers Hundreds of Billions of Dollars, and we have received NOTHING in return except Cost Overruns. The Railroad we were promised still does not exist, and never will.
“This project was Severely Overpriced, Overregulated, and NEVER DELIVERED. Thanks to Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, not a SINGLE penny in Federal Dollars will go towards this Newscum SCAM ever again. This was an ill-conceived and unnecessary project, and a total waste of Taxpayer money—But no more!”
A Metrolink commuter rail train at Santa Ana railway station near Los Angeles on December 22, 2024.
A Metrolink commuter rail train at Santa Ana railway station near Los Angeles on December 22, 2024.
Getty Images
Despite federal opposition, California’s leadership has remained fiercely defensive of the project.
In May, when Trump first threatened to withdraw funding, Governor Gavin Newsom said doing so would be “reckless” and would “cede a generational infrastructure advantage to China.”
Shortly after these threats, Ian Choudri, the CEO of the California High-Speed Rail Authority, said the project was open to private sector interests that could serve as a parachute if funding fell through.
What People Are Saying
In a statement to Newsweek, California Governor Gavin Newsom said: “Trump wants to hand China the future and abandon the Central Valley. We won’t let him. With projects like the Texas high-speed rail failing to take off, we are miles ahead of others. We’re now in the track-laying phase and building America’s only high-speed rail. California is putting all options on the table to fight this illegal action.”
California High-Speed Rail Authority CEO Ian Choudri told Newsweek: “Canceling these grants without cause isn’t just wrong—it’s illegal. These are legally binding agreements, and the Authority has met every obligation, as confirmed by repeated federal reviews, as recently as February 2025. America’s only high-speed rail project underway is fast approaching the track-laying phase, with 171 miles under active construction and design, 15,500 jobs created, and more than 50 major structures completed. This is no time for Washington to walk away on America’s transportation future.”
What Happens Next
Newsom said he would continue to support the construction of the project despite federal opposition.