7-Year-Old Tells Arkansas Senator: Don’t Take Away PBS Kids to Build Trump’s Border Wall
A new voice is being heard in the debate over President Donald Trump‘s promised border wall between the U.S. and Mexico.
During a town hall in Springdale, Arkansas, on Wednesday, Toby Smith — “almost 8” but still 7 — told GOP Sen. Tom Cotton he was concerned that the Trump administration might cut financial support to the National Park Service and public television in order to fund the wall.
“Donald Trump thinks a wall is more important than kids’ games. But to kids, it’s more important. And Donald Trump makes Mexicans not important to people who are in Arkansas who like Mexicans, like me, my grandma and all my people,” Toby said to thunderous applause from the crowd, according to a video posted by The Washington Post.
Sen. Tom Cotton
“And he’s deleting all the parks and PBS Kids just to make a wall. He shouldn’t do that. He shouldn’t. He shouldn’t do all that stuff for just a wall,” the 7-year-old added.
This kid asked the last question at the #CottonTownHall. His name is Toby. He's concerned about cutting PBS funding to pay for border wall. pic.twitter.com/d2LbeDhAbL
— Matt Mershon (@MattMershonKATV) February 23, 2017
The Corporation for Public Broadcasting could be privatized as part of a possible Trump administration plan to cut the federal budget, The Hill reported in January. The nonprofit supports public television, public radio and PBS — including PBS Kids.
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Cotton thanked Toby for coming to the town hall and said, “We are a melting pot. We are all one people.”
“We want Mexico to be a healthy, strong partner,” he added. “But we also have to protect our own citizens, and that’s where the wall comes in.”
