“Bending a knee” is old slang for submitting to a king or lord. That’s exactly what 51 senators and 216 representatives – including Rep. Jeff Hurd – did last week by voting for President Donald Trump’s rescission bill, which slashes $8.3 billion in foreign aid and $1.1 billion from public broadcasting. These funds had already been approved by Congress for 2026 and 2027. The impact of this and Hurd’s previous vote on the budget bill will be felt deeply, and disproportionately, in tribal and rural communities like ours – the communities that can least afford it.
Hurd defended his yes vote, calling the bill “a small step forward” in cutting government spending and targeting “non-lifesaving foreign aid and taxpayer-funded radio programming.” He pointed to promises that critical programs like the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) and food assistance would be spared and that some unused climate funds might be redirected to tribal radio stations.
But this logic collapses under scrutiny. The 1974 Impoundment Act allows rescissions, but it’s rarely used – in the past 20 years, most notably by President Biden to undo a failed Trump first term effort to withhold aid for Ukraine. Hurd says Congress controls the purse strings, but this vote reveals the opposite: submission to one man, not representation of 730,686 constituents.
It also shows a lack of knowledge of the impact of the all these cuts on his district and how public broadcasting, as one issue, actually works.
Hurd’s distinction between “essential” and “nonessential” overlooks real consequences. According to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, the broader Trump budget Hurd supported that includes cuts to Medicaid and SNAP food assistance – threatening rural hospitals and roughly 45,000 CD3 SNAP households – also adds $3.4 trillion to the deficit over 10 years. So much for fiscal responsibility.
Though some foreign aid programs survived, public media did not. The rescission bill eliminates $1.1 billion in funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which has had bipartisan support for 50 years.
Hurd admits tribal radio stations are at risk but curiously is unconcerned about rural stations in his district. He seems unaware that only 30% of CPB funding goes to NPR and PBS, while 70% supports emergency alert systems, rural transmission infrastructure, and local cultural programming and news reporting – services that save lives in remote areas.
CPB funds 1,500 local public radio and TV stations nationwide, including 50 in Colorado and 10 in CD3. In Southwest Colorado alone, KSJD in Cortez, KSUT Four Corners Public Radio in Ignacio, and KDUR Fort Lewis College Community Radio in Durango rely on these funds. Without them, these small stations will struggle to maintain programming, including local news, which is already in steep decline.
The rescission vote coincided with grim news also released last week in the Local Journalist Index 2025, from Muck Rack and Rebuild Local News. The report revealed a 75% drop in local reporters since 2002. Over 1,000 counties now have fewer than one full-time reporter, and just 4% of counties retain the reporting strength they once had. In 2024 alone, nearly 5,000 journalism jobs were lost nationwide.
While Hurd claims he’ll fight to restore essential funding in 2026, we’re not holding our breath. Congress may technically hold the purse strings – but we know who’s really calling the shots.
Let’s stop pretending these cuts reflect fiscal discipline. If they did, the $46.6 billion now allocated for border wall construction – three times what Trump spent during his first term and widely regarded as ineffective – might have been redirected to sustain public media and other essential services. Ironically, Trump’s own rhetoric this term has done more to reduce crossings than his wall ever did.
Now is the time for listeners and viewers to double down on supporting public media. The stakes – for civic engagement, public accountability, and emergency safety – have never been higher.
