President Trump on Friday proposed slashing $163 billion in federal spending next fiscal year, a drastic retrenchment in the role and reach of government that, if enacted, would eliminate a vast set of climate, education, health and housing programs, including some that benefit the poor.
Issuing his first budget proposal since returning to office, Mr. Trump sketched out a dim view of Washington. His blueprint depicted many core government functions as woke, weaponized, wasteful or radical, as the president looked to justify his request that Congress chop domestic spending to its lowest level in the modern era.
Mr. Trump proposed cutting funding for some federal law enforcement, including the F.B.I. He called on lawmakers to slash money meant to police tax evasion at the Internal Revenue Service. He recommended striking billions in funds that help finance clean water projects. And the president reserved some of his deepest cuts for education, health and science, including the National Institutes of Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which would see their budgets cut by around half.
Democrats immediately rebuked Mr. Trump for his proposal. Senator Chuck Schumer of New York, the Senate minority leader, called it “heartless” and an “all-out assault on hardworking Americans.” Even some Republicans took issue with Mr. Trump’s budget, although others, like Speaker Mike Johnson, endorsed the blueprint.
Mr. Trump also asked Congress to reduce, if not eliminate, billions of dollars in federal aid to help the poorest Americans. For one, the White House called for reconfiguring federal programs that provide rental assistance to low-income families, cutting aid by more than $26 billion next fiscal year. And the administration proposed the termination of a federal initiative, backed by some Republicans, that aids needy families in paying their monthly heating bills.
