Vance Casts Tie-Breaking Votes to Advance $9.4 Billion Spending Cut Package in Senate

Vice President JD Vance cast two decisive tie-breaking votes in the U.S. Senate on Tuesday, allowing a $9.4 billion rescissions package to move forward. The proposal, requested by the White House, seeks to cancel or redirect federal funds across several agencies, including the elimination of government support for PBS and NPR.

The Senate twice reached a 50–50 deadlock on procedural motions to begin debate on the measure. Vance’s intervention broke the ties, permitting the chamber to start formal consideration of the bill. Every Democrat and the chamber’s two independents voted against proceeding, while three Republicans—Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, and Susan Collins of Maine—joined them in opposition.

The rescissions package mirrors a plan passed by the House of Representatives in June by a narrow 214–212 margin. It proposes clawing back roughly $8.3 billion in unspent funds from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and an additional $1.1 billion from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB). The CPB partially finances both National Public Radio (NPR) and the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), meaning both organizations would lose federal support if the bill becomes law.

Initially, the legislation also included a $400 million reduction to the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). However, that cut is expected to be removed before final passage following negotiations among Senate Republicans. According to Senate Majority Leader John Thune of South Dakota, the forthcoming amendment reflects concerns raised within his caucus about maintaining global health initiatives.

“There was a lot of interest from our members in protecting PEPFAR,” Thune said following a meeting with Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Russ Vought. “If we can move this package through the Senate with that adjustment, we expect the House will accept the change and finalize a $9 billion rescissions bill.”

While GOP leadership celebrated the progress, some Republicans voiced strong objections. Senator Susan Collins, who voted against the motion to proceed, criticized the OMB for failing to provide lawmakers with detailed explanations of how individual programs would be affected.

“The rescissions package has a big problem — nobody really knows what program reductions are in it,” Collins said in a statement. “That isn’t because we haven’t had time to review the bill. Instead, OMB has never supplied the details that would normally accompany this kind of legislation.”

Collins singled out the proposed $2.5 billion reduction to the “Development Assistance” account, which supports initiatives such as basic education, clean water and sanitation projects, and food security programs in developing countries. “We don’t know how these cuts would affect those essential services,” she added.

The Maine senator also called the plan’s cuts to public broadcasting “excessive,” warning that they could disrupt services that many Americans rely on. She argued that, beyond well-known shows like Antiques Roadshow and Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood, local PBS and NPR affiliates deliver vital programming, including emergency alerts and community coverage.

“I share frustrations with the political bias often found at NPR,” Collins admitted. “I would support defunding it on those grounds. But local television and radio stations play an important civic role, particularly in rural areas like mine. We should know exactly what programs are being eliminated and what consequences will follow.”

The Senate must now spend up to ten hours in debate before moving to the amendment process and, ultimately, a final vote on passage. If approved, the bill will return to the House for review of any Senate changes before being sent to the president’s desk.

The proposal to defund NPR and PBS has also drawn attention outside of Congress. Television host Bill Maher recently voiced support for ending taxpayer support for the two media organizations after NPR’s CEO, Katherine Maher, testified before the House Select Committee on the Department of Government Efficiency. During her testimony, Maher—no relation to the comedian—faced sharp questioning over NPR’s editorial balance.

Republican members of the panel cited data showing that NPR’s newsroom staff included 87 registered Democrats and no registered Republicans. Maher called the statistic “concerning” but maintained that the organization’s coverage remains independent of personal politics.

On his Real Time program’s online segment, Bill Maher responded that the testimony underscored the need for NPR and PBS to operate without federal subsidies. “If they want to be independent, let them truly be independent,” he said.

As debate continues, the rescissions package remains a major flashpoint between fiscal conservatives eager to reduce government spending and moderates who fear the proposed cuts could weaken America’s soft power abroad and erode public media at home. The final Senate vote, expected later this week, will determine whether the administration’s $9 billion rollback of previously approved funds moves one step closer to reality.