Schumer warns GOP’s $9.4B Trump-backed cuts may trigger a government funding crisis and threaten bipartisan cooperation.

Schumer Sounds Alarm on GOP Funding Cuts

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer issued a sharp warning Tuesday as Senate Republicans prepared to advance a sweeping $9.4 billion rescissions package championed by President Donald Trump. The proposed cuts, crafted under the Department of Government Efficiency—formerly headed by tech billionaire Elon Musk—have raised alarms about their potential impact on the federal budget process and bipartisan cooperation in Congress.

Schumer, a Democrat from New York, cautioned that passage of the Trump-backed rescissions bill could have "grave implications" for the upcoming government funding fight, scheduled for September. In a letter to Senate Democrats, Schumer argued that the proposal risks upending the bipartisan appropriations process and threatens to undermine any consensus on future spending bills.

"Republicans’ passage of this purely partisan proposal would be an affront to the bipartisan appropriations process," Schumer wrote. He warned that the GOP’s approach makes it unreasonable to expect Democrats to work collaboratively on appropriations while Republicans simultaneously push cuts that target programs both parties previously negotiated.

Details of the Rescissions Package

The rescissions package, enabled by the Impoundment Control Act, gives the White House authority to ask Congress to roll back appropriated funding. To become law, such proposals require approval from both the House and Senate within 45 days. This particular package, which passed the House by a narrow two-vote margin last month, would eliminate $8.3 billion from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and over $1 billion from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB), which funds NPR and PBS.

Elon Musk’s DOGE team had made USAID a primary focus in their campaign against government waste, leading to a partial dismantling of the agency prior to the rescissions request. While the package needs only a simple majority to pass the Senate, some Republicans remain skeptical, especially about proposed cuts to public broadcasting and the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR).

Senate Appropriations Chair Susan Collins, a Republican from Maine, voiced concern in a recent hearing about the impact of the package on HIV and AIDS prevention programs, calling the cuts “extraordinarily ill-advised and shortsighted.”

Funding Showdown Ahead

With the government funding deadline approaching in September, Congress faces the challenge of passing a dozen appropriations bills—a feat not accomplished in years—or negotiating with Democrats to meet the Senate’s 60-vote threshold. The partisan nature of the rescissions bill threatens to complicate these negotiations and could increase the risk of a government shutdown.

Schumer, who has previously used government funding battles as leverage in congressional negotiations, made clear that Democrats may withhold support if Republicans continue on a partisan path. “This is beyond a bait-and-switch—it is a bait-and-poison-to-kill,” he said, urging Republicans to abandon the current course and pursue a bipartisan process instead.

As the September deadline nears, the fate of the Trump-backed rescissions package and the broader government funding debate remain uncertain, with the potential for significant disruption in the months ahead.