President Donald Trump on Wednesday said it’s “not possible” for the federal government to fund Medicare, Medicaid and child care costs, arguing that it should be up to the states to “take care” of those programs while the federal government focuses on military spending.
The president’s remarks were delivered to attendees at a private Easter luncheon at the White House, where Trump also accused Democratic-led states of fraud.
He went on to say that he told Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought: “Don’t send any money for day care, because the United States can’t take care of day care. That has to be up to a state. We can’t take care of day care. We’re a big country. We have 50 states. We have all these other people. We’re fighting wars. We can’t take care of day care. You got to let a state take care of day care, and they should pay for it too.”
Later in his remarks, the president added that states would have to raise their taxes to pay for child care costs and that the federal government “could lower our taxes a little bit to them to make up” for it.
“It’s not possible for us to take care of day care, Medicaid, Medicare, all these individual things,” Trump said. “They can do it on a state basis. You can’t do it on a federal. We have to take care of one thing: military protection. We have to guard the country.”
The Easter luncheon where the president made these remarks was not open to the press, but the White House posted the video of Trump’s remarks on its YouTube page — as it usually does with open press events — and then deleted it.
“President Trump was referring to rooting out the billions of dollars of fraud in these vital programs — and his record proves he will always protect and strengthen Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid,” White House spokesperson Olivia Wales said in a statement. “The President proudly signed historic legislation eliminating taxes on Social Security benefits for nearly all seniors and barring illegal immigrants and other ineligible individuals from fraudulently receiving Medicare and Medicaid benefits. The Trump economic agenda will continue to lower costs, making everyday life more affordable for hardworking American families.”
The federal government currently provides states with funds to subsidize child care for low-income families through programs like Child Care and Development Block Grants and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families. Democrats have long sought to pass federal laws that would further subsidize the cost of child care for families with young children.
Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., and Rep. Katherine Clark, D-Mass., introduced legislation last year that would expand early education access and cap child care costs for families at 7% of their household income.
Some Democrats quickly seized on Trump’s comments Wednesday, comparing the cost of child care to the cost of the ongoing U.S. military operation in Iran, which topped $11.3 billion in its first six days last month.
“Trump says we can pay for war in Iran but can’t afford childcare. Mr. President, the billions you wasted in Iran could pay for $10 day childcare for every American family with childcare workers paid $25 an hour,” Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., wrote in a post on X.
“For the cost of 3 weeks of this war, we could provide vision, hearing, and dental coverage to every senior on Medicare for a year. It is possible. Trump just doesn’t care to do it,” Sen. Andy Kim, D-N.J., wrote on X.
Members of the Trump administration, including the president, have for months accused states that receive federal grants for child care of perpetrating fraud, with little evidence. In January, the Department of Health and Human Services even froze access to child care and family assistance funds for five states led by Democrats: California, Colorado, Illinois, Minnesota and New York.
In December, the Trump administration targeted Minnesota in particular following viral accusations from conservative influencers that child care centers in the state were fraudulent.
A later review by the state’s Department of Children, Youth, and Families found that the day care centers at the heart of the viral attacks were operating normally.
On Wednesday, Trump again accused Democratic states of fraud, telling attendees at the Easter luncheon, “In Minnesota, in Los Angeles, they have thousands of [day care centers].”
Trump claimed the locations “have more day care centers than they have children. They literally, so they have thousands. So we go and we send inspectors out. Of the 700 that they looked at, approximately, in Minnesota, there were not one that was a day care center.”
He also accused Republican-led states of perpetrating fraud and “thievery,” saying that they have to “compete” with Democratic-led states.
“It’s many states, probably Republican states too, because they’re going to see it, and they’re not as — we’re not as thievery, but, you know, they don’t believe in thievery — but when they see the Democrats doing it, and then they have to compete with it. So I can’t imagine they’re not doing it. I just can’t imagine,” Trump said.
The president has appointed Vice President JD Vance as a key player in his mission to root out fraud. Last week, Vance convened the first meeting of the administration’s new anti-fraud task force. And on Wednesday, the vice president swore in Colin McDonald to be the assistant attorney general for national fraud enforcement.
