Trump's plan to slash 'woke' foreign aid, NPR funds clears House as Senate battle looms

House Republicans approved $9.4 billion in cuts to foreign aid and public broadcasting, including $8.3 billion from USAID and over $1 billion from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

President Donald Trump and House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., speak to reporters following a closed-door meeting with House Republicans on May 20, 2025, on Capitol Hill in Washington.  (The Washington Post via Getty Images)

Spending cuts in the legislation include a $8.3 billion rollback of funding to the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), and just over $1 billion in cuts to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which funnels federal dollars to NPR and PBS.

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President Donald Trump speaks as he welcomes the Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles NFL football team to the South Lawn of the White House on April 28, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Others argue that entirely slashing federal funding to public broadcasting would disproportionately hurt small local news outlets that rely on it most, and which are situated in areas that otherwise would be an information desert without those resources.

The legislation ultimately passed, however, and will now be sent to the Senate for consideration.

The $9.4 billion proposal is called a rescissions package, a mechanism for the White House to block congressionally approved funding it disagrees with.

Once transmitted to Capitol Hill, lawmakers have 45 days to approve the rescissions proposal, otherwise it is considered rejected. 

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Such measures only need a simple majority in the House and Senate to pass. But that's no easy feat with Republicans' thin majorities in both chambers.

If passed, Republican leaders hope the bill will be the first of several rescissions packages codifying spending cuts identified by Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).

Elizabeth Elkind is a politics reporter for Fox News Digital leading coverage of the House of Representatives. Previous digital bylines seen at Daily Mail and CBS News.

Follow on Twitter at @liz_elkind and send tips to elizabeth.elkind@fox.com

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