Former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, R-Calif., on Wednesday blasted the Trump administration’s budget proposal not to fund after-school programs as contradictory to the president’s campaign message.
“He has talked so much about the making America great. I just feel like taking that $1.2 billion away from the kids is not making America great,” Schwarzenegger told CNN host Van Jones at a town hall on Wednesday evening.
The celebrity-turned-politician said that while previous administrations, including that of George W. Bush and Barack Obama, initially tried to strip funding for the 21st Century Community Learning Centers, he helped ensure funding was reinstated.
Schwarzenegger insisted this new budget will not be balanced “on the backs of those kids.”
“Now we will go and get organized again and do it again. It’s that just simple. We’re not going to let anyone take that money away, because this is what helps kids so much to have a program after school,” added Schwarzenegger.
Trump and Schwarzenegger both came to politics after successful careers in the entertainment industry. The two parted ways earlier this year after Trump was unhappy with the replacement host’s performance on NBC reality TV show “Celebrity Apprentice.”
