1. United States
2. Mich.
3. Letter

The recent initiative ordering a sweeping review of federal funding for blue states is based on a false premise that has been repeated for years but remains inaccurate. Blue states, on average, send far more money to the federal government than they receive, while many red states depend on federal dollars to fund health care, infrastructure, disaster relief, and rural services. Targeting donor states is political retaliation that risks destabilizing the system that keeps lower income states afloat. A national government does not function by punishing the states that pay the bills. Whatever the intent, this announcement redirects public attention toward a manufactured conflict while more serious issues requiring transparency and accountability remain unresolved.