WASHINGTON — The Trump administration will no longer allocate taxpayer funds to media outlets, including Politico, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt announced Tuesday.
Leavitt said more than $8 million in federal funds had been used to subsidize subscriptions to Politico through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) in the past year alone.
JUST IN: Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt says media outlets including Politico will no longer be making millions of dollars with taxpayer money.
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) February 5, 2025
"I was made aware of the funding from USAID to media outlets including Politico who I know has a seat in this room…"
"I can… pic.twitter.com/zXtdodFQzo
It was found that money was spent on 32 Politico Plus user accounts.
“I was made aware of the funding from USAID to media outlets including Politico, who I know has a seat in this room,” she said during a press briefing.
“I can confirm that the more than $8M taxpayer dollars that have gone to essentially subsidizing subscriptions to Politico on the American taxpayer’s dime will no longer be happening,” Leavitt added.
She stated that the White House’s Domestic Operations and Government Efficiency (DOGE) team is now working to cancel the payments. It remains unclear how long the funding had been in place or which other media organizations received similar support.