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First GOP congressman to endorse Trump adamantly opposes one particular proposed budget cut
President Donald Trump participates in a congressional listening session on Feb. 16 with GOP members at the White House in Washington, D.C. Rep. Chris Collins (R-NY) (right), has taken issue with cuts to the Meals on Wheels program in Trump's 2018 proposed budget. (Ron Sachs/Getty Images)

First GOP congressman to endorse Trump adamantly opposes one particular proposed budget cut

Rep. Chris Collins (R-N.Y.), who was the first congressman to endorse Donald Trump for president, is speaking out against one of the items on the White House's federal budget chopping block.

Collins said Thursday night on CNN's "The Messy Truth" with Van Jones that he does not agree with the Trump administration's decision to cut funding for Meals on Wheels, a program that provides food to people older than 60 who are not able to shop for food or cook for themselves.

“This is the president’s budget. I’m not sure where the details came from. But when we get into appropriations, Meals on Wheels is a wonderful program," Collins said. "It is one I would never vote to cut, even one dollar.

"I do disagree with that ...," Collins continued. "I'm not going to try and justify it, because that's not my plan."

The White House announced more details Thursday of its proposed 2018 federal budget, which Office of Management and Budget director Mick Mulvaney described as an "America First" budget. The blueprint adds $54 billion more in spending to the defense budget while cutting about the same amount from a variety of non-defense areas.

[graphiq id="glcdDVTHhvD" title="Trump's Proposed 2018 Budget" width="600" height="749" url="https://w.graphiq.com/w/glcdDVTHhvD" ]

One of the cuts the White House proposed is to the Department of Housing and Urban development. Trump's 2018 budget would slash $6.2 billion from that department's funds, including $3 billion from the Community Development Block Grant program, which includes funding for Meals on Wheels.

Mulvaney defended the administration's decision to cut the program during Thursday's White House press briefing, saying that while Meals on Wheels "sounds great," the results it delivers aren't necessarily worth the cost.

"We're going to spend a lot of money, but we're not going to spend on programs that cannot show that they actually deliver the promises that we've made to people," Mulvaney said.

Federal funding for Meals on Wheels accounted for just 3 percent of the organization's overall budget in 2015, according to its annual report.

Most of the group's funding — 84 percent — came from corporate donations and individual contributions.

(H/T: The Hill)

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