EXCLUSIVE: RSC members unveil legislation to defund NPR

Four members of the House’s conservative Republican Study Committee (RSC) are introducing a series of bills to follow through on President Donald Trump’s moves to defund National Public Radio (NPR), the Washington Reporter can exclusively report.

The bills, whose sponsors include Rep. Claudia Tenney (R., N.Y.), Kat Cammack (R., Fla,), Ronny Jackson (R., Texas), and Dale Strong (R., Ala.), would permanently end NPR’s federal funding.

They are the latest in a series of bills that Hill Republicans are rolling out that will codify many of the cuts that Trump wants via his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) work.

Tenney told the Reporter that she’s introducing the Defund Government-Sponsored Propaganda Act precisely because she worked as a newspaper owner and publisher.

“I understand the importance of balanced, non-partisan journalism. Unfortunately, NPR has strayed far from that standard,” Tenney said. “NPR uses American taxpayer dollars to manipulate the news, lie to the public, and promote a partisan, left-wing agenda.”

This series of bills represents the latest in the RSC’s Set in Stone Initiative. Under its chairman, Rep. August Pfluger (R., Texas), the group has led House Republicans in moving to codify Trump’s executive orders.

The Reporter previously covered the RSC’s tranche of legislation that backs up Trump’s widely-popular maximum pressure campaign against Iran.

Jackson told the Reporter that his legislation that would “defund NPR” is a continuation of longheld priorities that both he and Trump have.

“Taxpayers shouldn’t be forced to support a media outlet that no longer delivers fair, balanced coverage,” he said.

“I was the first to introduce legislation to end NPR’s federal funding, and now that President Trump has taken action, it’s time to codify it and ensure their leftwing propaganda doesn’t get another cent of taxpayer money,” Jackson said.

Strong likewise emphasized the ties that his No More Funding for NPR Act has with Trump’s priorities. Strong’s bill, he said, is “common sense.”

“NPR has become nothing more than a mouthpiece for the far left, serving as an extension of the Democratic Party’s communication arm,” Strong said. “Hard-earned taxpayer dollars should not be used to fund liberal propaganda.”

“It is past time for Congress to stop subsidizing media that undermines the values and beliefs of everyday Americans,” he added.

Cammack also put the taxpayers first in her explanation for why she’s taking on NPR, telling the Reporter that “hardworking Americans should not be forced to subsidize a media outlet that consistently presents partisan bias under the guise of journalism, especially as NPR has repeatedly failed to cover stories simply because they do not align with the far-left narrative.”