What is the God Squad?

Trump has taken aim at our bedrock environmental laws like the Endangered Species Act many times. In 2026, he did so using the God Squad and a never-before-used loophole to bypass the Endangered Species Act — or ESA — and stop us from protecting wildlife in the Gulf of Mexico.  

This left an area the size of Montana in the Gulf of Mexico – and all its wildlife – exempt from the protections of the Endangered Species Act to allow for additional oil and gas drilling. At the core of this is Trump’s continued desire to attack, and eventually demolish, the ESA, polluting our lands and waters and killing wildlife all for destructive resource extraction.

What is the Endangered Species Act? 

ESA stands for “Endangered  Species Act,” legislation put in place to help protect and recover threatened and endangered species. The ESA has a 99% success rate in saving listed species from extinction and has historically had widespread bipartisan support across America.  

A major part of the ESA is the mandate that all federal agencies avoid taking actions that are likely to harm – or “jeopardize” – endangered species and their habitats. When proposing a project, federal agencies must meet with the US Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service to determine if and how it could affect endangered species. If it will cause or contribute to the threat of extinction, the lead agency must adopt alternatives to prevent that harm. The vast majority of projects are found to pose no risk or are modified to avoid harm. Where there is a rare and truly irreconcilable conflict between species survival and a project, the Endangered Species Act provides for an Exemption Committee (colloquially referred to as the “God Squad”) to convene in very rare cases to determine whether a development should proceed despite harm to protected species.

What is the God Squad? 

The Endangered Species Act Exemption Committee, informally known as the “God Squad,” was created by Congress in 1978. Since its creation, the committee has only convened and voted to grant an exemption three times. The committee is made up of six permanent roles and one additional temporary member: 

• Secretary of the Department of the Interior  
• Secretary of Agriculture 
• Secretary of the Army 
• The Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers 
• The Administrator of the Environmental  Protection Agency  
• The Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. 
• An additional member designated by the president as a representative of the state or states affected by the project.  

Their primary task is to decide whether a proposed project should be granted an exemption from the Endangered Species Act. Five of the seven committee members must find that a proposed project meets the criteria below before the Committee can declare it exempt from the ESA:  

• No reasonable alternatives exist 
• The project has benefits that outweigh the risks of losing an entire species 
• The project is of regional or national significance 
• The lead agency has not already committed to plans or a project that would violate the ESA without approval. 

The last time the God Squad met was in 1992 to determine whether an exemption should be granted for logging in old-growth forests, even though the project risked driving the northern spotted owl to extinction. Although the Committee granted an exemption, conservation organizations challenged the decision in federal court and won. Two months later, the exemption request was withdrawn. 

This power to decide whether an endangered species lives or dies — essentially playing god — is where the name “God Squad” comes from. When the federal government has people in each of these seven roles who have the experience to do their jobs completely and honestly, the committee is equipped to make difficult decisions about endangered species. But when Trump places his corrupt friends, tech billionaires, and unqualified Fox News hosts in leadership positions, the committee loses its integrity and becomes another weapon Trump is using to dismantle the ESA and push destructive resource extraction. 

Why Did the God Squad Meet in 2026? 

On day one of his second term, Trump issued an executive order declaring a “national energy emergency,” calling for additional investment in U.S. oil and gas infrastructure. Since then, his administration has relentlessly pushed actions to achieve so-called “energy dominance,” including efforts to spur additional drilling in the Gulf. In early 2026, the Trump administration added to that list by invoking a never-before-used loophole to circumvent the ESA. The Secretary of Defense claimed that any protections might get in the way of additional Gulf drilling threaten America’s energy independence and that this is a matter of national security. The administration then speculated that a court ruling might someday result in the need for greater protections. On March 31^st, 2026, the God Squad convened (illegally) and, in less than 20 minutes, granted an exemption for Gulf oil and gas activities based on Secretary Hegseth’s arbitrary “national security” finding (also illegal).  

Because these exemptions are intended to be exceptionally rare, Congress established rigorous safeguards for considering whether to grant them. The God Squad is permitted to meet and vote only after:

• A determination by the USFWS or the NMFS that the project would put a species at risk of extinction and that no alternative solutions exist 
• A federal agency submits a formal and detailed application for an exemption 
• A public process, including an-the-record hearing before an administrative judge to develop a factual and scientific record

Which Animals Live in the Gulf of Mexico? 

The Gulf of Mexico is home to some of North America’s most treasured and threatened wildlife – over two dozen species in the region are protected by the ESA as threatened or endangered species.  

One of these is the Rice’s whale, an imperiled species found nowhere else on Earth, with around 50 individuals remaining. Thanks to scientists at the NMFS and the USFWS, we know that any unmitigated oil and gas activity in the Gulf would harm the Rice’s whale and could lead to its extinction.

Other endangered species at risk include: 

• Mississippi sandhill crane 
• Piping plover 
• Kemp’s ridley sea turtle 
• Loggerhead sea turtle  

The area is also home to sperm whales, all five species of sea turtles, and numerous other fish, whales, seabirds, turtles, and coral species that rely on Gulf habitats for feeding, nesting, and resting.

What are the Risks of Additional Oil Drilling in the Gulf of Mexico? 

• Strikes from vessels, or ships, can severely injure and kill marine mammals. Noise from these vessels and other oil drilling activities (like seismic air gun surveys) also affects whales’ ability to communicate with each other, find maters, and find food.
• Oil spills – including both catastrophic spills like BP’s Deepwater Horizon disaster and the hundreds of smaller spills and leaks that occur every year kill and injure marine life 
• Offshore drilling activities and construction also harm marine habitats, generate debris, and can pollute surrounding waters. 
• Oil rigs and refineries along the coast that process oil produce toxins that pollute the land, air and water. 
• Offshore drilling infrastructure and the pollution caused by them limits commercial and recreational fishing opportunities.
• The construction of rigs and refineries contributes to coastal erosion. 

In addition, many of the Gulf’s major refineries are located near low-income communities and communities of color, exacerbating the inequities they already face and further threatening human health. For example, an 85-mile area along the Mississippi River in Louisiana has been dubbed “Cancer Alley” due to the high rates of cancer, respiratory illness, and other health issues. With over 200 industrial facilities in the immediate vicinity, it’s hard to deny the connection. 

What About Oil Spills? 

Oil spills are a major threat to marine and coastal ecosystems.  In 2010, the Deepwater Horizon oil rig in the Gulf exploded, killing 11 people and causing around 200 million gallons of oil to spew underwater for over 87 days. In the aftermath, the Rice’s whale population declined by 22% and has not recovered since. The disaster also killed countless animals, including marine mammals, sea turtles, fish, birds, and more, and continues to have an impact to this day.  

This is just one of the major oil spills that have occurred in the Gulf. But exempting oil and gas activity from the ESA means that there will be even fewer opportunities to compel the oil industry to take the steps necessary to prevent future spills.

We Won’t Let Trump Win 

Underlying this attack is the complete dismissal of alternatives, including options that would allow oil and gas development while reducing harm, as well as alternative energy sources such as solar and wind power. 

This exemption is just another one of the Trump administration’s attacks on our bedrock environmental laws and the health of our lands and waters. Friends of the Earth won’t stop fighting in court to protect wildlife, communities and our shared planet.