Trump Sued By Who?

NPR, along with several of its local affiliates, filed a lawsuit on Tuesday against the Trump administration, challenging President Trump’s executive order that seeks to eliminate all federal funding to NPR and PBS. The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Washington, D.C., argues that the order violates both the Constitution and the First Amendment. NPR and three Colorado-based public radio stations Aspen Public Radio, Colorado Public Radio, and KSUT are among the plaintiffs.

According to the lawsuit, the executive order explicitly targets NPR and PBS because, in the president’s view, their programming and news content are not “fair, accurate, or unbiased.” NPR President and CEO Katherine Maher stated that the executive order runs directly counter to the intent of Congress, as laid out in the Public Broadcasting Act, which aims to support public broadcasting institutions that serve all Americans without political interference.

Named in the lawsuit are President Trump, White House budget director Russell Vought, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, and National Endowment for the Arts chair Maria Rosario Jackson. The legal action is the latest development in an escalating conflict between the Trump administration and public media.

The White House defended the executive order, arguing that taxpayer dollars should not support media organizations perceived as favoring a particular political agenda. White House spokesperson Harrison Fields stated that the president is lawfully exercising his authority to ensure efficient use of taxpayer funds and would continue to do so.

The executive order instructs the board of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) to freeze funding for NPR and PBS. While NPR receives only about 1% of its annual funding from the CPB, local stations rely on CPB for roughly 8% to 10% of their operating budgets, making the funding freeze particularly damaging to public radio’s regional presence.

Last month, CPB also took legal action against the Trump administration after attempts were made to remove three of its five board members. In a separate lawsuit, CPB argued that it is not a government entity and that its board members are not government officers, asking the court to issue a temporary restraining order.

Though PBS is not a party to NPR’s lawsuit, the organization has signaled that it may take similar steps. PBS CEO Paula Kerger has said she is prepared to vigorously defend the organization’s independence and its board from political interference. A spokesperson for PBS told Axios that all options are on the table, including legal action, to ensure continued programming and public service.

This legal battle is part of a broader campaign by the Trump administration to defund and weaken media institutions. The administration has previously targeted the Voice of America and the U.S. Agency for Global Media. Just last month, a federal judge ruled that journalists who had been fired or placed on leave must be reinstated, and that funding to those agencies must be restored.

In a related move on Tuesday, two Democratic senators sent letters to Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, urging them to prioritize the safety of journalists working for U.S.-funded international broadcasters. The growing conflict underscores the administration’s aggressive posture toward public media and its willingness to use executive authority to reshape the country’s media landscape.