Hi,
BREAKING: The Trump administration is preparing to formally request that
Congress rescind $1.1 billion in funding for PBS and public radio,
according to multiple news reports.^1
If a majority in both houses of Congress vote in favor of Trump's request,
then the money is gone. Poof. Just like that.
These cuts would be devastating, especially for local stations, and a vote
could come as soon as Congress returns from recess in less than two
weeks.^2
Demand Progress has mobilized tens of thousands of people to contact
Congress and defend PBS, but now, with this huge vote approaching, we need
to do even more to fight back.
[ [link removed] ]Will you make a donation to support our work, including our efforts to
save PBS and public radio?
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donation will go through immediately.
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Republicans have tried to defund public broadcasting for years, including
during Donald Trump's first term, but the attacks have always been beaten
back.^3
This time really could be different.
Defunding PBS and public radio is part of Project 2025, and Elon Musk
listed it among DOGE's first priorities.^4 Trump's Federal Communications
Commission chair has launched a phony investigation into PBS, and Marjorie
Taylor Greene held a slanderous congressional hearing attacking public
broadcasting as "anti-American."^5,6
Now we're facing the moment of truth, with the Trump administration
formally asking Congress to rescind $1.1 billion in previously approved
funding.
Make no mistake. Trump's all-out attack on public broadcasting is about
one thing: controlling the information that Americans see and hear.
The good news is that a large majority of Americans — including two-thirds
of Trump voters — oppose the defunding of public radio ans PBS.^7 To stop
these cuts, we must mobilize that support and flood Capitol Hill with
petition signatures and phone calls.
[ [link removed] ]That's why we're asking you today: Will you donate $10 to
help save PBS, and push for other key reforms?
With gratitude,
The team at Demand Progress Action
[ [link removed] ]DONATE
Sources:
1. Bloomberg, "Trump Targets NPR, PBS, Foreign Aid in $9 Billion Spending
Cut," [ [link removed] ]April 14, 2025.
2. Politico, "White House to send Congress a formal request to nix $9.3B
for PBS, NPR, State Department," [ [link removed] ]April 14, 2025.
3. Semafor, "Weakened US public broadcasters will fight for their lives in
2025," [ [link removed] ]December 9, 2024.
4. The Guardian, "Trump's threat to defund all US public media has NPR and
PBS on the back foot," [ [link removed] ]December 28, 2024.
5. The New York Times, "F.C.C. Chair Orders Investigation Into NPR and PBS
Sponsorships," [ [link removed] ]January 30, 2025.
6. Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, "DOGE Subcommittee
Chairwoman Marjorie Taylor Greene Opens Hearing with NPR and PBS
Executives," [ [link removed] ]March 26, 2025.
7. Axios, "Exclusive: PBS poll finds broad Trump voter support amid GOP
defunding push," [ [link removed] ]February 4, 2025.
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