Republicans Advance Federal Budget that Cuts Funds for Schools
House GOP makes it clear they stand with Trump on cutting funds for public schools
Donald Trump is no fan of public education.
The Big, Ugly Bill that passed at his behest included a diversion of taxpayer funds for a private school voucher scheme.
And, he’s encouraged Congress to move forward with cuts to funds the federal government provides to public schools - a total of $12 billion in cuts.
While the Senate didn’t go along with this scheme, the House GOP was all too happy to oblige:
This week, the US House Appropriations Committee voted to approve Trump’s federal 2026 budget bill, which includes massive, devastating cuts to local public schools across America. The committee voted along party lines 35-28 to advance the bill to the House floor, with all Democrats voting against these cuts.
Unlike the Senate version, which did not cut K-12 funding, the House version slashes $12 billion in school spending (a 15% cut) — including $4.7 billion in cuts to Title I, which funds the nation’s most vulnerable students, constituting a 27% cut to low-income students. Democrats offered amendments to restore the proposed $4.7 billion Title I cut, but all Republicans rejected them.
Which brings me to this:
Defending public education is a winner for Democrats.
These federal cuts will have real and negative impacts to schools in districts and states across the country.
While school privatizers persist in their attempts to secure public funds for their risky schemes, a vast majority (90%+) of kids in the U.S. attend public schools - in red states and blue states, in counties that voted 2-1 for Trump and counties that rejected Trump by the same margin.
People love their local public schools. They are the backbone of many small and medium-sized communities.
Highlighting the pain these Trump cuts will cause may offer a chance to cut through the noise. Especially if you’re running for Congress in a swing district or state against a Republican who supported the cuts to local schools.
Also, this is the type of policy action with an impact that is easy to explain. Congressperson X voted for the budget that ended the programs we loved at the public schools we celebrate.