In their latest political stunt, Donald Trump and his billionaire buddy Elon Musk slashed millions in public health funding — including $190 million for children’s cancer research — and critical protections for Americans against junk fees and scams after breaking a bipartisan agreement at the American people’s expense. While Trump works to appease his billionaire donors, his dangerous, out-of-touch agenda could inflict real pain on working families and gut efforts to lower drug costs, stop junk fees and scams, and provide critically needed funding for public health.

Trump and his MAGA minions in Congress have decided to threaten a government shutdown for his political gain — and now they’ve stooped as low as cutting child cancer research. 

Rolling Stone: “Republicans Cut Child Cancer Research From Funding Bill After Musk’s Meddling”

Daily Beast: “The Gabriella Miller Kids First Pediatric Research Program was established in 2014 with funding approved by Congress for the next 10 years. On Wednesday, it was all set to have its funding reauthorized—until Musk and Trump demanded a slimmed-down funding bill Wednesday night, tanking a bipartisan agreement at the 11th hour in dramatic fashion.”

Sam Stein, The Bulwark: “Wanna talk about heart wrenching. 

Here is a leading pediatric cancer group TWO days ago celebrating the coming passage of the Gabriella Miller Kids act funding extension. It was just cut out of the CR after Elon/Trump demanded cuts”

The Bulwark: “But some of the hardest cuts to swallow involved medical research. In particular, advocates say, the revised funding bill delivered a devastating blow to the fight against pediatric cancer.”

Trump and MAGA Republicans cut a provision that would lower prescription drug costs while holding Big Pharma accountable. 

Healthcare Dive: “The bill would force PBMs to pass through 100% of rebates to sponsors of prescription drug plans in Medicare and the group health market. The middlemen would be prohibited from billing Medicaid states and plans more for drugs than what they reimburse pharmacies. and, PBMs would have to provide detailed data on prescription drug spending to federal regulators and their clients.” 

Ohio Capital Journal: “Measures intended to control prescription drug costs seem dead after President-elect Donald Trump and Elon Musk on Wednesday worked to sink a bipartisan deal to fund the government. Now, under a new Republican plan released Thursday evening, gone are measures that community pharmacists say were the most significant efforts so far to rein in pharmacy middlemen they say are largely to blame for the rising cost of prescription drugs. They’re measures for which Trump himself had voiced support.”

Trump also commanded his MAGA minions to get rid of a ban on junk fees that hotels and ticketing sites use to jack up prices on working families.

CBS News: “The funding measure also included provisions aimed at making hotel and live-event ticket prices more transparent by prohibiting deceptive advertising. The legislation would require that ticket sellers and hotels must disclose the full price, while the ticket sellers must guarantee refunds in the event of cancellation or postponement.”

Trump and MAGA Republicans even slashed protections that would hold internet service providers accountable for raising prices on rural Americans. 

The Bulwark: “The list of provisions left in the dust heap was lengthy. The initial compromise bill included language to ensure that providers of internet service to rural areas weren’t ripping off customers, to protect consumers from hidden hotel fees, to secure semiconductor supply chains, to restrict U.S. outbound investment in China, even to prohibit deepfake pornography. All those were all gone in the successor bill.”

Let’s not forget that MAGA Republicans broke a bipartisan agreement — while Democrats are fighting to keep the government open and fund lifesaving programs.

Rep. Jennifer Wexton: “I’ve been fighting to fund the Gabriella Miller Kids First childhood cancer research program since the day I came to Congress.

It has wide bipartisan support.

Now extreme Republicans are caving to the world’s richest man so he & Donald Trump can pay for their personal tax cuts.”

Sen. Brian Schatz: “F*** cancer. Especially pediatric cancer. These  people want to punish these precious little kids to pay for tax cuts for the wealthiest corporations in human history.”