As his rescissions package falters, President Donald Trump has now made one demand louder than the rest: defund public radio and TV. To that end, he’s now openly threatening any Republican who votes to preserve funding for public broadcasting.
In a July 10 Truth Social post, Trump singled out NPR and PBS as priorities for defunding ahead of the July 18 deadline, warning fellow Republicans that supporting continued funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting would cost them his endorsement.
“It is very important that all Republicans adhere to my Recissions Bill and, in particular, DEFUND THE CORPORATION FOR PUBLIC BROADCASTING (PBS and NPR), which is worse than CNN & MSDNC put together,” Trump wrote. “Any Republican that votes to allow this monstrosity to continue broadcasting will not have my support or Endorsement.”
This follows a warning from within the Republican party that failure to act would trigger a “Trump eruption,” warning colleagues that inaction would be a public embarrassment to the President.
While narrowly passing the US House in June, Trump’s rescissions proposal – a rare maneuver typically used to claw back unspent federal funds – has faced resistance from both parties in the Senate over its attempt to strip $1.1 billion from public broadcasting.
Senators Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Dan Sullivan (R-AK), and Mike Rounds (R-SD) have voiced concern over the bill’s proposed elimination of public broadcasting funds, particularly for its effect on rural stations. Appropriations Chair Susan Collins (R-ME) opposes other cuts, particularly to the PEPFAR program, and is considering an alternative bill to preserve local public media funding, though she criticized NPR for partisanship.
Meanwhile, Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) has issued a threat of his own. Schumer warned that the GOP’s “toxic proposal” to claw back previously approved funds could derail future budget negotiations. With government funding set to expire at the end of September, that could mean a government shutdown.
If the Senate does not act by Friday, all funding will be locked in for fiscal years 2026 and 2027.
With the clock ticking, it remains unclear whether the rescissions bill will advance. But Trump’s message sends a clear signal: any Republican who supports continued federal support for NPR or PBS may do so at their own political peril.
Disgusting. What is that Bloviating Orange Blob going to do ? He is way over his skis here, and the Epstein files will bring him down into the pile of rubbish that he is. Those GOP lawmakers need to vote for what their constituents want.
Or he’s gonna do what??
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