GOP lawmakers push to chop PBS funding over Sesame Road’s Satisfaction Month submit

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Republican lawmakers referred to as to defund PBS after the tv station’s long-running kids’s present, "Sesame Road," celebrated LGBTQ "Satisfaction" Month on social media.

The youngsters’s present went viral after it posted a brief message on June 1, kicking off Satisfaction Month.

"On our avenue, everyone seems to be welcome. Collectively, let’s construct a world the place each particular person and household feels cherished and revered for who they're. Comfortable #PrideMonth!" Sesame Road’s X pos t learn.

The submit reached over 23 million views and sparked criticism from conservatives, who slammed the children' present for turning "woke."

"Sesame Road" drew backlash on-line after celebrating "Satisfaction" Month on social media. (The Related Press)

NPR, PBS HONCHOS FACE TENSE GRILLING BY GOP LAWMAKERS OVER BIASED COVERAGE, TAXPAYER FUNDING

In response, Republican legislators called on PBS, which has been the historic dwelling of Sesame Road for over 50 years, to lose its federal funding.

"PBS is shamelessly grooming our kids whereas accumulating taxpayer {dollars}. That is evil and will infuriate each mum or dad in America. DEFUND!!" Rep. Mary Miller, R-Ailing., posted to X .

"Federal funds aren’t for grooming. Via Sesame Road characters or in any other case. Defund PBS," Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, posted to his personal X account in reply to a video of a 2020 episode of "The Not-Too-Late Present" with Elmo that includes Johnathan Van Ness of Netflix’s "Queer Eye for the Straight Man."

Van Ness can be scheduled to appear as a star visitor on Sesame Road this season.

Sesame Road's Satisfaction Month submit learn, "On our avenue, everyone seems to be welcome. Collectively, let’s construct a world the place each particular person and household feels cherished and revered for who they're. Comfortable #PrideMonth." (Getty Pictures)

DEMOCRATS INVOKE CHILDREN’S SHOWS IN BIZARRE DEFENSE OF PBS, NPR: ‘FIRE ELON, SAVE ELMO’

Miller's workplace didn't instantly return a request for remark asking why they believed "Sesame Road" was "grooming" kids with their submit.

Lee's workplace instructed Fox Information Digital the senator has been a constant advocate of pulling taxpayer {dollars} from PBS for a few years.

Republicans in Congress have lengthy tried to tug authorities funding from public media organizations NPR and PBS that they argue are liberally biased.

PBS and Sesame Road didn't instantly return Fox Information Digital’s request for remark.

In March, Rep. Ronny Jackson, R-Texas, reintroduced a invoice to defund NPR and PBS, saying they've been "pushing Democrat speaking factors below the pretend banner of ‘public media.’"

PBS sued the White Home after President Trump signed an govt order calling to slash its taxpayer funding. (Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Pictures; REUTERS/Nathan Howard)

DEFUNDING PBS AND NPR COULD MAKE THEM EVEN WORSE

President Donald Trump additionally signed an executive order on Could 1 with the purpose of eradicating federal funding for NPR and PBS. The order, titled "Ending Taxpayer Subsidization of Biased Media," referred to as for the Company for Public Broadcasting (CPB) Board to stop direct and oblique funding to the 2 media retailers.

"On the very least, Individuals have the appropriate to anticipate that if their tax {dollars} fund public broadcasting in any respect, they fund solely truthful, correct, unbiased, and nonpartisan information protection. No media outlet has a constitutional proper to taxpayer subsidies," the order reads.

The Company for Public Broadcasting (CPB) receives about $500 million yearly from Congress to distribute to public radio and TV stations, with a few of that funding going to assist NPR and PBS.

Republicans in Congress have made a number of makes an attempt to tug authorities funding from PBS and NPR through the years. (llison Robbert/Bloomberg through Getty Pictures; Eva Marie Uzcategui/Bloomberg through Getty Pictures)

PBS SUES TRUMP ADMINISTRATION, SAYS EXECUTIVE ORDER CUTTING FEDERAL FUNDING VIOLATES FIRST AMENDMENT

PBS and NPR responded to the manager order by submitting lawsuits in opposition to the Trump administration in Could.

"[In] an Govt Order issued on Could 1, 2025, the President declared that authorities funding of personal sources of non-commercial media is ‘corrosive,’ and singled out PBS (alongside Nationwide Public Radio) as failing to offer 'truthful, correct, unbiased, and nonpartisan information,'" the court docket submitting obtained by Fox News Digital reads.

"PBS disputes these charged assertions within the strongest potential phrases. However no matter any coverage disagreements over the function of public tv, our Structure and legal guidelines forbid the President from serving because the arbiter of the content material of PBS’s programming, together with by trying to defund PBS," it continued.