Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR) accused President Donald Trump’s Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Russell Vought of being responsible for the deaths of “hundreds of thousands of children.”
The wild allegation came as Democrats erupted over proposed budget cuts during a heated Senate hearing on Wednesday.
Vought appeared before the Senate Appropriations Committee to defend the Trump administration’s rescissions package, a slate of proposed federal spending reductions submitted to Congress earlier this month.
The package includes cuts to foreign aid programs like USAID and PEPFAR, which Democrats and some Republicans sharply opposed.
The hearing quickly grew tense, with protesters briefly disrupting the proceedings and several senators launching personal attacks on the administration’s fiscal agenda.
“We are talking a quarter million children because of your irresponsible shutdown of programs that Congress had fully authorized,” Merkley said, citing a Boston University study that linked funding reductions to an alleged 246,000 child deaths.
He went further, blaming Vought for acting “in partnership with Elon Musk and the Secretary of State” to unconstitutionally defund aid programs.
“How do you feel about being responsible for hundreds of thousands of children dying?” he demanded.
Vought rejected the charge as political theater, reminding the committee that incoming administrations are allowed to reprioritize spending.
“Every administration has the ability to do a programmatic review when they come into office,” he said, before Merkley cut him off and called the response “ignorant and callous.”
“Few Americans have ever had such a devastating and disastrous impact,” Merkley added.
Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) also attacked the administration’s handling of the cuts, accusing Vought of trying to “illegally maneuver around Congress” and undermining U.S. interests abroad.
“Will you tell us specifically where, the Philippines, Pacific islands, Jordan, you’re planning to undermine American interests?” she asked.
Vought insisted the administration remained committed to strategic partners like Jordan and Egypt, but Murray again interrupted and accused him of withholding information.
Even some Republicans broke ranks.
Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) criticized cuts to public broadcasting, which she argued provides vital emergency communication in remote regions of Alaska.
Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) also weighed in, warning that cutting foreign aid could weaken America’s “soft power” and create openings for China.
“Instead of creating efficiency, you’ve created vacuums for adversaries like China to fill,” McConnell said.
“Responsible investments in soft power prevent conflict, preserve American influence, and save countless lives.”
Vought countered that many foreign aid programs are wasteful or mask questionable agendas under “benevolent-sounding titles.”
He called on Congress to act responsibly with taxpayer money.
“The American people voted for change,” he said.
“President Trump stands ready to put our fiscal house back in order and put the American taxpayer first.”
“A vote for rescissions is a vote to show that the United States Senate is serious about getting our fiscal house in order,” Vought concluded.
“I hope the Senate will join us in that fight.”
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