Senate Republicans narrowly passed a significant procedural hurdle to claw back billions of dollars in previously authorized foreign aid and public broadcasting funding.
The tie-breaking vote was cast by Vice President JD Vance, following a 50-50 split among Senators, including Lisa Murkowski (Alaska), Susan Collins (Maine), and Mitch McConnell (Kentucky).
The big picture: The proposed bill, which already garnered House approval, involves $83 billion in cuts to foreign aid programs and over $1 billion in reductions to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB).
- The special rescissions process initiated by the White House enables the Senate to approve these specific funding cuts with a simple majority vote, bypassing expected Democratic opposition.
- To ensure the bill’s passage, top Republicans are intensifying their efforts to secure support for the package amidst the limitation of losing only three votes in the Senate.
Go deeper: The Trump administration collaborated with Republicans to address concerns raised by Senators Collins and Murkowski, resulting in potential amendments to the package that could exempt certain programs from cuts.
- Notably, the reductions proposed in the bill have faced criticism for potentially disproportionately affecting rural and tribal stations across the country.
