Topline
The Senate voted to approve a White House request to cancel $9 billion in previously approved funding for foreign aid and public broadcasting early on Thursday, handing President Donald Trump and his administration a significant win in their push to gain more control over federal spending.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., speaks to the press outside his office at the US Capitol … More
Key Facts
The rescissions package, which will claw back the $9 billion, was approved with a 51-48 vote.
Sens. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, and Susan Collins, R-Maine, were the only two GOP senators who voted against the bill while Sen. Tina Smith, D-Minn., was unable to vote as she had been taken to the hospital earlier in the day after she “started to not feel well.”
Former Senate GOP leader Mitch McConnell, who had sided with Murkowski and Collins to block a procedural vote on the bill, voted in favor of its final passage.
The bill now moves to the GOP-controlled House, which is expected to pass it later this week.
The legislation agrees to claw back $1.1 billion in funding from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting—which helps fund public broadcasters like PBS and NPR—and around $8 billion from foreign aid programs including allocations to the United States Agency For International Development (USAID).
Despite voting against the rescissions package, Collins was able to secure a major concession to remove a measure which would have cut $400 million in funding for the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief.
How Have Senate Democrats Reacted To The Passage Of The Rescissions Package?
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., tweeted: “With these Republican cuts, this is a dark day for America, a dark day for rural Americans, a dark day for any American who relies on public broadcasting during floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, and other disasters. Democrats will not stop fighting back for the American people.” In a statement, Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., said: “Congressional Republicans have yet again chosen their loyalty to President Trump over the interests of their constituents and the world’s poorest…This rescissions package tarnishes America’s reputation as a global leader and further corrodes the institutions that Americans rely on for local news and emergency alerts.”
What Did The Two Gop Opponents Of The Rescissions Measure Say?
While speaking on the Senate floor earlier on Wednesday, Murkowski raised concerns about Congress abdicating its power over federal spending to the White House. She said, “We’re lawmakers. We should be legislating. What we’re getting now is a direction from the White House and being told, ‘This is the priority, we want you to execute on it, we’ll be back with you with another round.’’ I don’t accept that. I’m going to be voting no.”
Further Reading
Senate sends Trump’s DOGE cuts package to the House as deadline to pass it closes in (CNN)
Senate approves cuts to NPR, PBS and foreign aid programs (NPR News)
