Donald Trump is turning up the heat on GOP senators who oppose his push to slash funding for PBS and NPR.
In a fiery post Thursday night on Truth Social, the president declared that any Republican who doesn’t back his demand to shut down public broadcasting will face political consequences.
“It is very important that all Republicans adhere to my Recissions Bill and, in particular, DEFUND THE CORPORATION FOR PUBLIC BROADCASTING (PBS and NPR), which is worse than CNN & MSDNC put together,” Trump wrote. “Any Republican that votes to allow this monstrosity to continue broadcasting will not have my support or Endorsement.”
The warning came as the Senate nears a July 18 deadline to approve a $9.4 billion spending cut package that already passed the House. The cuts take aim at not just public media, but also USAID and the U.S. Institute of Peace—programs that would be gutted under Trump’s plan.
But cracks are forming in the GOP.
Senator Mike Rounds of South Dakota pushed back, saying rural communities and Native American tribes rely on public radio.
“There’s a specific group of Native American tribes that have a public radio system set up, and really the vast majority of the funding for it comes from one source, and that’s within the rescission package,” Rounds said. “What we’re trying to do is to work with [the Office of Management and Budget] to find a path forward where the funding for those radio stations would be left alone.”
Other Republicans raised red flags too. Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska called public broadcasting a “lifeline.” Senators Steve Daines of Montana and Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia echoed similar concerns.
Meanwhile, Senator Susan Collins of Maine spoke out against the bill’s proposed cuts to global health programs.
“I do not support the rescission for PEPFAR and global health programs,” Collins said.
Trump’s message is unmistakable: fall in line or risk losing his political backing. And with reelection on the horizon for Rounds, Daines, Capito, and Collins, the pressure is building fast.
Murkowski, who won without Trump’s endorsement in 2022, may be the rare exception—but Trump’s warning was aimed at the rest: obey or be replaced.
