Trump backs off proposal to cut Special Olympics funds
30 March, 2019
U.S. President Donald Trump announced Thursday that he was backing off a budget request to eliminate funding for the Special Olympics, reversing course after his administration weathered days of criticism for the proposed cut.
Speaking to reporters as he left the White House for a rally in Michigan, Trump said he had authorized funding for the event. “I heard about it this morning. I have overridden my people. We’re funding the Special Olympics.”
Trump’s announcement came after Education Secretary Betsy DeVos spent days defending the proposal, which drew widespread criticism from lawmakers, as well as advocates and celebrities. Even before the president stepped in, legislators said the cut was unlikely to be approved. The president added: “I’ve been to the Special Olympics. I think it’s incredible.”
His comments came hours after Senate Democrats grilled DeVos during a budget hearing on the proposal. She was also pressed by House Democrats days earlier, sparking a wave of criticism online.
In a heated exchange with Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., DeVos said she “wasn’t personally involved” in pushing for elimination of the funding, but she defended it as her agency seeks to cut $7 billion for the 2020 budget.
“Let’s not use disabled children in a twisted way for your political narrative,” DeVos told Durbin. “That is just disgusting and it’s shameful and I think we should move on from that.”
Durbin countered that it would be shameful to pull support for the Special Olympics, saying “someone has to accept responsibility for a bad decision.”
The Trump administration’s education budget proposal calls for the elimination of $17.6 million in funding for the Special Olympics, amounting to roughly 10 percent of the group’s overall revenue. Most of its funding comes from individual and corporate contributions and other fundraising efforts.
DeVos insisted the Special Olympics should be supported through private donations.