And #Trump has called on #Congress to eliminate ALL CURRENT & FUTURE #funding for #PublicMedia & the Corporation for Public Broadcasting [#CPB], though he has not sent a formal request for the current funding to be clawed back.

Earlier this spring, the #Republican-led Congress passed a stop-gap budget measure that fully funds CPB through the end of September 2027.

#Trump specified in his EO that recipients of federal funds from #CPB could not, under his decree, send money to #PBS & #NPR. NPR typically receives about 1% of its annual revenues from the CPB & another several percent indirectly from stations. On average, CPB provides each #PublicRadio station 8-10% of their revenues each year.

When #Trump said he was ordering the Corporation for Public Broadcasting not to fund #NPR or #PBS any longer, the corporation's chief exec said he had no ability to do so.

"#CPB is not a federal executive agency subject to the President's authority," CPB chief Patricia Harrison, a fmr #Republican National Cmte co-chair, said. "#Congress directly authorized & funded CPB to be a private nonprofit corporation wholly #independent of the #FederalGovernment."

An accompanying *fact* sheet for #Trump’s #ExecutiveOrder cited the claim that #NPR published articles “insist[ing] that COVID-19 did not originate in a lab” & “refused to cover the Hunter Biden laptop story.”

NPR's Maher rejected such ideological characterizations, pointing to such statements by Trump to argue he was seeking to exact illegal #retribution for their #news coverage.

#Trump cited his *authority* as president under the #Constitution & federal laws in making the order & said that neither #NPR nor #PBS "presents a fair, accurate, or unbiased portrayal of current events to taxpaying citizens." In other public statements, Trump & his allies have called the public broadcasters "left-wing propaganda" & made similarly disparaging remarks.

#Trump's May 1st order took the form of a directive to the board of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which distributes >$500B each year to #PublicBroadcasters, primarily to local stations. By #statute, ¾ of that money is devoted to #TV, ¼ to #radio.

The differing profiles of the 3 stations joining in the suit capture the appeal & reach of the broader #PublicRadio system: the statewide #Colorado Public Radio, which is based in Denver; Aspen Public Radio which broadcasts throughout the Roaring Fork Valley; & KSUT, originally founded by the Southern #Ute Indian Tribe & now serving 4 federally recognized tribes in the #FourCorners region in #Arizona, Colorado, #NewMexico & #Utah.

"The Order targets #NPR & #PBS expressly because, in the President's view, their news & other content is not 'fair, accurate, or unbiased.'"

The “wolf”line was drawn from a 1988 dissent by the late #SCOTUS Justice Antonin Scalia.

The suit says the admin is usurping #Congress' right to direct how federal money will be spent & to pass laws. It names #Trump, OMB dir #RussVought, Treasury Secy #ScottBessent & #MariaRosarioJackson, the chair of the #NEA, as defendants.

"We are devastated & concerned that this ruling might lead to further adverse reactions from the administration," Patsy Widakuswara, the lead plaintiff & White House bureau chief for #VoiceOfAmerica tells NPR. "But our day in court is not over yet, & we are committed to fighting until we can return to our congressionally mandated right to broadcast factual, balanced, & comprehensive news."

In the meantime, however, #KariLake has plunged back into slashing the ranks of the workforce, w/hundreds of contract employees let go for a second time over the past weekend. The #VoiceOfAmerica website hasn't posted new stories in >2 months.

On Thurs, the full appellate court made clear it would not intervene, at least for now.

"Not only is there an absence of 'reasoned analysis' from the defendants; there is an absence of any analysis whatsoever," Lamberth wrote.

Earlier this month, by a 2-to-1 margin, an appeals court panel temporarily froze Lamberth's ruling, as it takes time to consider the full merits of the case. It has not yet issued a decision on the full case.

The lawsuit argues that the #grant terminations did not allow #DueProcess to the orgs, lacked sufficient clarity, & that Henneberg’s office lacked “constitutional, statutory, & regulatory #authority” to terminate the #grants. The attys also argue that the move violated the constitutional #SeparationOfPowers clause that gives #Congress #appropriation powers.

Read Judge Myong Joun’s full 88 page order for the cases

State Of New York, et al., v. Linda McMahon, et al.; Civil Action No. 25-10601-MJJ

&

Somerville Public Schools, et al., v. Donald J. Trump, et al.; Civil Action No. 25-10677-MJJ

https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.mad.282419/gov.uscourts.mad.282419.45.0_2.pdf

The #injunction was requested in a lawsuit filed by the Somerville & Easthampton school districts in Massachusetts & the American Federation of #Teachers, along w/other #education groups.

In their lawsuit, the groups said the #layoffs amounted to an #illegal shutdown of the Education Dept. They said it left DoE unable to carry out responsibilities required by #Congress, including duties to support #SpecialEducation, distribute #FinancialAid & enforce #CivilRights laws.

Judge #Illston will nowdecide whether to extend her ruling pending the outcome of the case, which could take months or longer to resolve. If she does not extend her temporary restraining order, it will expire on Friday.

Last Friday, the #Trump admin asked #SCOTUS to pause Illston's temporary ruling, saying she improperly infringed on Trump's constitutional powers to control the #ExecutiveBranch [nope].