House to vote on cutting off funds for NPR

[March 17, 2011]  WASHINGTON (AP) -- House Republicans are preparing another strike against public broadcasting with legislation to bar federal funding of National Public Radio and prohibit local public stations from using federal money to pay NPR dues.

The House last month voted to strip NPR's parent organization, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, of all federal funding through the end of the current budget year. The NPR vote is set for Thursday.

Conservative antagonism toward NPR increased last week after an NPR executive was caught on tape deriding the tea party movement. Both the executive and NPR's president resigned after the incident.

Massachusetts Democrat Jim McGovern said Republicans were engaged in an "ideological battle" in going after NPR. But Colorado Republican Doug Lamborn, the sponsor, said NPR "can survive, even thrive" without government subsidies.

[Associated Press]

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