National Public Radio has hit back at President Donald Trump’s order to slash its funding with a bombshell lawsuit.
The public broadcaster filed its suit on Tuesday, three weeks after Trump signed a late-night executive order to freeze all federal funding for NPR and PBS, accusing them of producing biased coverage akin to “left-wing propaganda.”
NPR and three of its Colorado affiliates countered by accusing Trump of violating the Constitution and the First Amendment’s protections for free speech. Any funding cuts, they said, must come from Congress—not a unilateral decision by Trump.
“The order is unlawful in multiple ways. It flatly contravenes statutes duly enacted by Congress and violates the separation of powers and the spending clause by disregarding Congress’ express commands,” the lawsuit reads. “It also violates the First Amendment’s guarantees of freedom of speech and of the press.”
The suit accuses Trump of “punishing” the broadcaster because he dislikes its programming, which it says is illegal. The suit is not seeking damages. Instead, it asks a federal judge to throw out Trump’s executive order and for the funds appropriated by Congress to continue flowing.
“The Order is textbook retaliation and viewpoint-based discrimination in violation of the First Amendment, and it interferes with NPR’s and the Local Member Stations’ freedom of expressive association and editorial discretion,” the suit continues.
The White House did not immediately comment on the suit.
NPR and PBS receive only a small portion of their funding from Congress, with NPR claiming that federal dollars account for as little as one percent of its funding. The majority comes from private donors, sponsors, and advertising revenue.
The federal funding received by PBS and NPR is allocated through the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which was established by an act of Congress in 1967. It was set up to be funded two years in advance to shield the corporation from political turmoil, but Trump has attempted to skirt this protection via executive order.
Trump’s executive order also required the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and other federal agencies to eliminate any indirect funding that went to NPR or PBS programs through sponsorships or events.
The public broadcasters are not the only ones whose funding is in limbo because of the president. Trump has also frozen federal funding to Harvard University—angered by its refusal to give in to his hiring and anti-DEI demands—and is attempting to bar it from accepting any international students, another potential hit to its coffers.
NPR, PBS, and the Trump administration have butted heads throughout the first four months of MAGA 2.0.
In March, exes at NPR and PBS testified in front of Congress and faced accusations of liberal bias from Republican lawmakers. The following month, Trump attempted to fire several board members at the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, but it sued to block the action.
Trump’s executive order to freeze funding to PBS and NPR was signed on May 2.
The order “also threatens the existence of a public radio system that millions of Americans across the country rely on for vital news and information,” the lawsuit challenging Trump said.
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