WASHINGTON (TNND) — House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said Wednesday he would like to cut funding for Planned Parenthood and PBS, both of which receive federal support.

Fox News host Martha MacCallum asked Speaker Johnson during an on-air interview if he planned to “destroy” the companies.

“I would like to do that, that’s for sure,” the congressman said, noting that it would require consensus in Congress.

“Some of this will be at the direction of the White House. He has broad authority to do much of this,” spokesman Johnson continued, referring to President-elect Donald Trump. “But when Congress is involved, it takes the hard work of legislating and getting everyone on the same page.”

There is a “long list of areas” where lawmakers know there is “waste,” “fraud” and “abuse,” according to the speaker, who told MacCallum the government is too big, does too many things and do almost nothing well.

“We need to reduce the size and scope of government. It serves people. It unleashes the free market again,” he said. “Our policy changes will be part of it, but I think that if we can shrink the scope and scope of these things and make drastic changes, we will make a big contribution to the security of the country.”

The last time Trump was in the White House, he proposed cutting all funding for PBS. Paula Kerger, president and CEO of PBS, said the network received bipartisan support in Congress in 2020 because public television plays a “vital role” in homes across the country.

“We are grateful for the public’s support and will remain focused on providing services that transform lives and strengthen communities,” she added.

Neither PBS nor Planned Parenthood responded to requests for comment from The National News Desk on Thursday.

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