Crane Introduces Bill Defunding the National Endowment for Democracy

Representative Eli Crane (R-AZ) has introduced legislation to pull federal funding from the National Endowment for Democracy (NED), saying, "Hardworking citizens should not be forced to foot the bill for anything that undermines freedom of speech and liberty."

The National Endowment for Democracy is a private institution founded in 1983 that aims to promote democratic values abroad.

However, Rep. Crane suggests that they have strayed far away from these objectives, saying it "quickly evolved into a key contributor to global censorship campaigns, domestic propaganda, and regime change politics."

As the Heritage Foundation wrote, the NED is run almost exclusively by Democrats and anti-Trump Republicans and has sought to delegitimize conservative speech online, and this provides the impetus behind Rep. Crane's legislation to defund it.

"I'm proud to introduce this sensible measure to ensure that American resources are no longer used to support this organization's anti-American objectives," the Arizona Congressman said in his press release, adding, "Hardworking citizens should not be forced to foot the bill for anything that undermines freedom of speech and liberty. The National Endowment for Democracy has strayed far from its original mission. We owe it to the American people to protect their interests and put an end to this disgusting waste of their money."

Crane is not the first Arizona Republican calling for the defunding of organizations subject to partisan capture, as Representative Andy Biggs (R-AZ) introduced a bill in March that would defund the Department of Education's Office of Enforcement.

As Rep. Biggs described, the Biden Administration disproportionately targeted faith-based schools with enforcement actions and fines, including a $14 million fine against Liberty University in March 2024 for supposed failure to comply with criminal reporting standards, while Michigan State University only received a $4.5 million fine for failing to report the crimes of former gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar.

"Congress must codify President Trump's efforts to ensure that the government can never again be weaponized against American citizens," Biggs said on X (formerly Twitter) about the bill.