House approves Trump’s $9 billion cut to public broadcasting and foreign aid
The House on Friday gave final approval to President Donald Trump’s request to rescind about $9 billion in federal spending, marking the first successful presidential rescission package in decades.
The measure, which passed by a narrow 216-213 vote, now heads to Trump’s desk for his signature. It eliminates roughly $1.1 billion for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) and nearly $8 billion in foreign aid programs aimed at addressing drought, disease, and political unrest in developing nations, News.Az reports, citing foreign media.
“This is an important step to get back to fiscal sanity,” said House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), framing the move as a push to rein in what Republicans view as wasteful spending.
The vote followed the Senate’s approval of the package, 51-48, early Thursday. No Democrats supported the measure in either chamber, arguing the cuts were partisan and warning that Congress was ceding its constitutional spending authority to the executive branch.
The CPB’s $1.1 billion rescission represents the entire amount allocated for the next two fiscal years. The White House has criticized the public media system as “politically biased” and unnecessary.
The CPB funds over 1,500 local public television and radio stations, as well as PBS and NPR programming. Lawmakers from rural states voiced concern about the impact on communities that rely on these stations for critical alerts.
Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) highlighted that in remote areas, public stations are “not just your news — it is your tsunami alert, it is your landslide alert, it is your volcano alert.” Her comments came after a 7.3 magnitude earthquake struck near the Alaska Peninsula Tuesday, triggering tsunami warnings delivered via public broadcasting.
The foreign aid reductions target programs designed to support global health and stability. Democrats slammed the move as “short-sighted” and accused Republicans of political posturing rather than genuine fiscal discipline.
Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.), House Democratic leader, said: “No one is buying the notion that Republicans are actually trying to improve wasteful spending.”
The cuts follow the GOP’s earlier passage of Trump’s tax and spending reduction bill, which the Congressional Budget Office projects will increase the national debt by $3.3 trillion over the next decade.
Despite concerns, Republicans signaled more rescission efforts could follow, setting the stage for continued battles over federal spending and executive authority.
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