And so it begins. During a recent appearance on Fox News, House Speaker Mike Johnson confirmed he was in favor of defunding PBS (along with Planned Parenthood) as preparations for Donald Trump’s second presidency and a fully Republican-controlled Congress begin.
During Trump’s first administration, he repeatedly proposed federal budgets calling for the elimination of government-funded arts programs, including the National Endowment for the Arts, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. The latter provides funding for PBS, NPR, and other public TV and radio outlets.
At the time, these proposals stalled in Congress — even when Republicans held both chambers. Just this summer, however, the House Appropriations Committee went as far as proposing zero funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting effective in 2027.
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It’s well worth pointing out that funding for national arts endowments doesn’t even make up a full percentage point of the federal budget. Of the $6.75 trillion spent in the fiscal year 2024, the NEA and NEH each received $207 million. Meanwhile, the CPC received $535 million.
That amounts to 0.003% each for the NEA and NEH and 0.008% for the CPC. Meanwhile, the 2024 federal budget provided $824.3 billion to the Department of Defense, or roughly 12%.
It certainly looks like dark times are up ahead.
Mike Johnson says he supports defunding PBS and Planned Parenthood pic.twitter.com/H4g63Ygi2Z
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) December 4, 2024
