President Donald Trump’s proposed budget is coming under new scrutiny this week in the wake of the Las Vegas shooting, as it proposes to cut millions from programs that work to prevent domestic terrorism and prepare local law enforcement to respond.
The Las Vegas Police Department has been heralded for its quick response to the shooting — a sentiment repeated by Trump on Tuesday, who called LVPD response a “miracle.”
“How quickly the police department was able to get in was really very much of a miracle,” Trump told reporters on the South Lawn of the White House. “They’ve done an amazing job.”
The LVPD received a $500,000 grant from the Countering Violent Extremism grants — a program would not be funded at all next year under Trump’s budget plan.
The Trump administration has denied any intention to defund counter-violent extremism programs at home, instead saying they are developing a new strategy on how to move forward.
“We really intend to elevate and amplify our terrorism prevention efforts in a big way, because the threat environment is serious, we’re taking it seriously and we’re doing a full end-to-end review of what we do on terrorism prevention to make sure that our efforts are effective,” an unnamed official told CNN. “We do not intend to focus our terrorism prevention efforts exclusively on one ideology. DHS is committed to combating both domestic terrorism and international terrorism and bolstering efforts for both.”
Cuts to domestic terrorism programs
If he gets his way, Trump would cut about $300 million in funding to programs focusing on emergency response and preventing domestic terrorism incidents, CNN reported.
Here are some of the things that would be lost if Trump’s cuts are approved:
— About $49 million in grants for two Federal Emergency Management Area plans, Countering Violent Extremism and Complex Coordinated Terrorist Attacks.
— Department of Homeland Security grant programs cut by $200 million.
— State Homeland Security Program budget slashed by $17 million.
— The Emergency Management Performance Grant Program could be cut by $70 million.
