Donald Trump has issued a stark ultimatum to Republican senators: back his proposed cuts to public broadcasting or risk losing his endorsement in the next election. The former president is pressing for support of a $9.4 billion rescissions bill, which includes $1.1 billion in cuts to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting—home to NPR and PBS. While some conservative lawmakers support the bill, others have voiced concern about the impact on rural communities and Native American groups who rely heavily on these services.
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Senators Lisa Murkowski and Susan Collins are among those opposing the bill in its current form. Murkowski explicitly rejected the provisions targeting NPR and PBS, while Collins said she is working on amendments to protect funding in affected regions. Senator Mike Rounds also warned of the practical implications for remote areas where public broadcasting is often the only means of emergency communication. Many are now negotiating potential changes with the White House to soften the blow.
Trump has made defunding public media a cornerstone of his campaign against what he views as anti-conservative bias. In a post on Truth Social, he called for Republicans to “adhere” to the bill and warned that those who support continued funding for NPR and PBS “will not have my support or endorsement.” He has previously signed an executive order to eliminate federal funding for public broadcasting, accusing it of failing to provide unbiased coverage. Public funds currently make up a small portion of NPR and PBS budgets—1% and 15%, respectively.
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In response, both NPR and PBS have launched legal challenges against the administration, arguing that the order is unconstitutional and infringes on First Amendment rights. NPR’s lawsuit states that Trump’s actions demonstrate clear retaliatory intent, while PBS accused him of attempting to control editorial content through financial coercion. Despite these challenges, the White House has continued to push Congress to follow through with the funding cuts, reigniting a fierce debate over the future of publicly funded journalism in the United States.
