Latest news with #RescissionsBill
Newsweek
2 days ago
- Politics
- Newsweek
Full List of Republicans Who Voted Against Donald Trump's DOGE Cuts
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. The House of Representatives narrowly passed a rescissions package Thursday, a centerpiece of President Donald Trump's Department of Government Efficiency initiative, that would strip $9.4 billion in approved federal funding, including $1.1 billion from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. But not all Republicans fell in line. In a 214-212 vote, four GOP representatives—Mike Turner of Ohio, Mark Amodei of Nevada, Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania and Nicole Malliotakis of New York—joined all Democrats in opposing the bill. Why It Matters The House narrowly approved a package targeting foreign aid programs and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. This corporation funds National Public Radio (NPR), the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), and thousands of public radio and TV stations nationwide. Before the vote, the package faced growing pressure from Trump and conservative advocacy groups. Trump urged Republicans to support it in a post on Truth Social just before the vote, writing: "The Rescissions Bill is a NO BRAINER, and every single Republican in Congress should vote 'YES.'" He also called NPR and PBS "a Radical Left Disaster, and 1000% against the Republican Party." Rep. Mark Amodei speaks as (L-R) Rep. Elise Stefanik, Rep. Tom Emmer and House Speaker Mike Johnson listen at the RNC headquarters on June 26, 2024. Rep. Mark Amodei speaks as (L-R) Rep. Elise Stefanik, Rep. Tom Emmer and House Speaker Mike Johnson listen at the RNC headquarters on June 26, 2024. Photo byWhat To Know The cuts are the closest Republicans have come in decades to defunding public broadcasting and sharply cutting humanitarian aid. Fiscal conservatives support the package, but public media advocates and aid groups warn that the impact would be immediate and serious. "This rescissions package sends $9.4 billion back to the U.S. Treasury," said Michigan Representative Lisa McClain, the chair of the House Republican Conference. "That's $9.4 billion saved from being wasted. It's taxpayer money," she told the Associated Press. Representative Chip Roy, a Texas Republican, defended the cuts, criticizing spending on "pottery classes" and "diversity, equity and inclusion programs." Roy said concerns about a humanitarian crisis are overblown. "Let's just reject this now," he said on the House floor. Breaking With the Party Representative Amodei from Nevada's 2nd District has raised concerns about budget cuts affecting rural areas. Fitzpatrick and Turner also represent districts where NPR and PBS stations are important local news sources. The cuts to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting would hit rural stations hard. Nearly half of the 1,500 affected stations are in rural communities, according to the AP. Public broadcasters warn that many stations could shut down, limiting emergency alerts, local news, and educational programming. Senator Lisa Murkowski, a Republican from Alaska, who will vote on the bill in the Senate, warned it would "severely hamper" critical communications in her state. "What some see as a frivolous expense is a vital resource that saves lives in Alaska," she told NBC News. Foreign Aid Cuts Prompt Global Alarm Democrats strongly criticized the proposed cuts to humanitarian funding. The rescissions would slash $900 million from global health programs, $500 million from child and maternal health programs, and $400 million for fighting HIV. Another $800 million in emergency refugee aid is also at risk. "These cuts will lead to the deaths of hundreds of thousands," said Representative Jim McGovern, a Massachusetts Democrat. "This bill is good for Russia and China and undertakers," added Representative Steve Cohen, a Tennessee Democrat. House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries called the measure "reckless" and part of "an extreme ideological crusade." Speaking to the AP, he added, "Cruelty is the point." What People Are Saying Representative Lisa McClain, chair of the House Republican Conference, told the Associated Press: "Those Democrats saying that these rescissions will harm people in other countries are missing the point. It's about people in our country being put first." Abby Maxman, president of Oxfam America, in a statement: "We are already seeing women, children and families left without food, clean water and critical services after earlier aid cuts, and aid organizations can barely keep up with rising needs." What Happens Next The Trump administration is employing a tool rarely used in recent years that allows the president to transmit a request to Congress to cancel previously appropriated funds. That triggers a 45-day clock in which the funds are frozen pending congressional action. If Congress fails to act within that period, the spending will remain in effect.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
House clears $9.4B in funding clawbacks requested by White House
House Republicans have narrowly advanced a request from the White House to claw back $9.4 billion that lawmakers have already approved for public media and more than a dozen accounts across the State Department focused on foreign assistance. The 214-212 vote is a major victory for President Donald Trump, who had been lobbying hard for lawmakers to pass the legislation, including in a social media post shortly before members went to the floor. 'For decades, Republicans have promised to cut NPR, but have never done it, until now,' Trump said, in part. 'The Rescissions Bill is a NO BRAINER, and every single Republican in Congress should vote, 'YES.' MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!' It's also a huge relief for Speaker Mike Johnson, who hours earlier was projecting cautious optimism that the package of funding cuts would pass despite knowing his margins were exceedingly narrow. 'We think we have the votes. We're going ahead with it,' Johnson told reporters Thursday afternoon. One 'yes' vote: Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.), who is known to frequently break with his party. 'First time I've ever seen us cut spending in my life. I would be 'yea' all day long,' Massie said in a brief interview earlier this week, previewing his support. The legislation would revoke $8.3 billion in foreign aid and $1.1 billion for public broadcasting. It faced opposition from some Republican lawmakers concerned about slashing the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, or PEPFAR, and how emergency alerts could be impacted by the public media cuts. House Republican leadership and White House officials spent days trying to assuage the concerns of lawmakers worried that the clawbacks would hurt their local public broadcasting stations, emergency alert systems and efforts to prevent AIDS around the world. The fight to convince House Republicans continued up until the final gavel on Thursday. Johnson and Whip Tom Emmer huddled with the holdouts on the House floor during the vote to try to sway them in favor of the measure after they had already voted against the measure. At one point, as many as six Republicans were recorded as voting "no" — enough to tank the bill. Two of those holdouts, Reps. Don Bacon of Nebraska and Nick LaLota of New York, flipped to yes, handing Johnson — and Trump — the win. GOP Reps. Mark Amodei of Nevada, Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania, Nicole Malliotakis of New York and Mike Turner of Ohio opposed the bill. In defense of cuts to public broadcasting, senior GOP lawmakers argued that the local PBS affiliates in their home states do good work but that those in some other states air inappropriate programming. "These stations are some of the most partisan stations out there. Can you imagine if a conservative station was funded? The left would have screamed, vilified and exterminated it a long while ago," said Rep. Dan Meuser (R-Pa.), during floor debate. Democrats countered that's a lie. 'That's BS. It's total BS,' Connecticut Rep. Rosa DeLauro, the House's top Democratic appropriator, said in a brief interview. 'These comments that it's 'woke' in this state or that — what the hell do you know? Nothing.' Still, there are discussions underway among many appropriators that they could try to offset some of these slashes in upcoming spending bills, since the funding cuts won't impact accounts until after the new fiscal year kicks in come October 1. 'I am concerned about the future of trying to do away with public television. I'm a supporter of public television in Idaho, they do a fantastic job,' said Rep. Mike Simpson (R-Idaho), a senior member of the Appropriations Committee, who ultimately voted in favor of the bill. The package now heads to the Senate, where Republicans are discussing whether they can amend it – despite the complicated mechanics for doing so. The rescissions process was created under the decades-old law enacted to block presidents from withholding federal cash Congress has already approved. The Senate also has the option to approve sections of the package piecemeal and reject others. That's what Congress did back in 1995 when the House and Senate approved a rescissions package that clawed back less funding than then-President Bill Clinton had requested to cut. But doing that would send it back to the House, where passage a second time may not be guaranteed. Senate Majority Leader John Thune said the package 'could be' changed in the Senate. 'We'll see,' he told reporters Thursday. 'I would expect that rescissions package probably will be a July timeframe," Thune said. Congress has until midnight on July 18 to act on the legislation, otherwise the proposal will expire and the White House is required to spend the money as lawmakers intended. Meredith Lee Hill contributed to this report.
Politico
2 days ago
- Business
- Politico
House clears $9.4B in funding clawbacks requested by White House
House Republicans have narrowly advanced a request from the White House to claw back $9.4 billion that lawmakers have already approved for public media and more than a dozen accounts across the State Department focused on foreign assistance. The 214-212 vote is a major victory for President Donald Trump, who had been lobbying hard for lawmakers to pass the legislation, including in a social media post shortly before members went to the floor. 'For decades, Republicans have promised to cut NPR, but have never done it, until now,' Trump said, in part. 'The Rescissions Bill is a NO BRAINER, and every single Republican in Congress should vote, 'YES.' MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!' It's also a huge relief for Speaker Mike Johnson, who hours earlier was projecting cautious optimism that the package of funding cuts would pass despite knowing his margins were exceedingly narrow. 'We think we have the votes. We're going ahead with it,' Johnson told reporters Thursday afternoon. One 'yes' vote: Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.), who is known to frequently break with his party. 'First time I've ever seen us cut spending in my life. I would be 'yea' all day long,' Massie said in a brief interview earlier this week, previewing his support. The final margin was narrow — as many as six Republicans had been recorded as opposing the bill; two of those ultimately changed their votes. Johnson and Whip Tom Emmer huddled with the holdouts on the House floor during the vote to try to sway them in favor of the measure; Budget Chair Jodey Arrington also touched base with multiple of the Republicans who had cast no votes. The legislation would revoke $8.3 billion in foreign aid and $1.1 billion for public broadcasting. It faced opposition from some Republican lawmakers concerned about slashing the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, or PEPFAR, and how emergency alerts could be impacted by the public media cuts. House Republican leadership and White House officials spent days trying to assuage the concerns of lawmakers worried that the clawbacks would hurt their local public broadcasting stations, emergency alert systems and efforts to prevent AIDS around the world. In defense of cuts to public broadcasting, senior GOP lawmakers argued that the local PBS affiliates in their home states do good work but that those in some other states air inappropriate programming. 'These stations are some of the most partisan stations out there. Can you imagine if a conservative station was funded? The left would have screamed, vilified and exterminated it a long while ago,' said Rep. Dan Meuser (R-Pa.), during floor debate. Democrats countered that's a lie. 'That's BS. It's total BS,' Connecticut Rep. Rosa DeLauro, the House's top Democratic appropriator, said in a brief interview. 'These comments that it's 'woke' in this state or that — what the hell do you know? Nothing.' Still, there are discussions underway among many appropriators that they could try to offset some of these slashes in upcoming spending bills, since the funding cuts won't impact accounts until after the new fiscal year kicks in come October 1. 'I am concerned about the future of trying to do away with public television. I'm a supporter of public television in Idaho, they do a fantastic job,' said Rep. Mike Simpson (R-Idaho), a senior member of the Appropriations Committee, who ultimately voted in favor of the bill. The package now heads to the Senate, where Republicans are discussing whether they can amend it – despite the complicated mechanics for doing so. The rescissions process was created under the decades-old law enacted to block presidents from withholding federal cash Congress has already approved. The Senate also has the option to approve sections of the package piecemeal and reject others. That's what Congress did back in 1995 when the House and Senate approved a rescissions package that clawed back less funding than then-President Bill Clinton had requested to cut. But doing that would send it back to the House, where passage a second time may not be guaranteed. Congress has until midnight on July 18 to act on the legislation, otherwise the proposal will expire and the White House is required to spend the money as lawmakers intended. Meredith Lee Hill contributed to this report.
