CDC Officials Defy President Trump

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is participating in a World Health Organization (WHO) conference, seemingly in defiance of President Donald Trump’s executive order to cut ties with the global health body. The agency has not clarified whether it received an exemption from the order.

Key Facts:

President Trump signed an executive order last month requiring all U.S. officials to stop working with the WHO.
The CDC confirmed it will virtually attend a WHO-led conference on influenza vaccines this week.
Trump cited WHO’s mishandling of COVID-19, failure to reform, and excessive financial demands on the U.S. as reasons for the withdrawal.
Trump has suggested the U.S. could rejoin WHO if the organization undergoes meaningful reform.
The WHO expressed disappointment over Trump’s decision and hopes the U.S. will reconsider.

The Rest of The Story:

The CDC’s decision to participate in the WHO vaccine consultation meeting raises questions about whether the agency is following White House directives.

Trump’s executive order explicitly stated that U.S. officials must halt cooperation with the WHO, yet the CDC has not explained how or why it continues engaging with the global organization.

BREAKING: Despite Trump’s executive order banning CDC-WHO communication, CDC officials attended a WHO vaccine consultation WITHOUT APPROVAL.

The meeting focused on 2025-26 flu vaccines—and CDC never announced its plans.

Trump ordered a WHO withdrawal over its Covid failures &… pic.twitter.com/jw13UAVIbo

— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) February 25, 2025

This isn’t the first time WHO membership has been debated.

During Trump’s first term, he moved to withdraw from the WHO in 2020, but the decision was reversed by President Joe Biden in 2021.

Now, with Trump back in office, the battle over U.S. involvement with the WHO is reigniting, and CDC officials may soon find themselves at odds with the administration.

Commentary:

Any federal employee who openly defies a presidential directive should be removed immediately.

There is no room for rogue bureaucrats acting against the administration’s policies.

The president is elected to set the country’s agenda, not unelected officials operating behind the scenes.

If CDC officials disagree with Trump’s WHO decision, they should resign—not work against him.

This kind of bureaucratic defiance is part of a larger problem within the federal government.

Over the past decade, we’ve seen numerous cases where agencies slow-walk, obstruct, or outright ignore policies they don’t like.

This “resistance” mindset within the government undermines democratic governance.

Trump made his stance on the WHO clear.

The organization’s failures during COVID-19, its ties to China, and its lack of accountability justified cutting ties.

If WHO wants U.S. participation, it should implement reforms—not expect the CDC to sneak around White House directives.

If the CDC had a valid exemption to participate in this conference, it should have been transparent about it.

Instead, its vague response only fuels suspicions that some officials are trying to keep one foot in the WHO, hoping for another policy reversal down the road.

That’s not how a functioning government should work.

The Bottom Line:

The CDC’s decision to engage with the WHO raises serious concerns about bureaucratic defiance within the federal government.

Trump’s executive order was clear—no cooperation with the WHO.

If agencies ignore directives from the White House, the administration must take swift action to enforce discipline and accountability.