Sen. Curtis: Trump cuts are in line with what Americans want
Jan 30, 2025, 3:00 PM
FILE: Sen.-elect John Curtis, R-Utah, sits in his temporary basement office during an interview in the Russell Senate Office Building Thursday, Dec. 12, 2024, in Washington, D.C. (John McDonnell, for the Deseret News)
(John McDonnell, for the Deseret News)
SALT LAKE CITY — Utah Sen. John Curtis said he relies on his experience as the mayor of Provo, Utah, to understand President Donald Trump’s wanting to reduce the size of the federal government.
On Monday, the Trump administration issued a memo announcing the president had frozen federal grants, loans, and similar programs. However, the order was rescinded less than two days later.
Next, Trump announced he would offer buyouts to federal employees who wanted to leave their jobs.
“In 2010, we had some serious budget problems,” Curtis said of the beginning of his time as the mayor of Provo. “And it was tough. But we did have to buy some employees out and rearrange what we were doing.
“In any organization, whether you’re government or corporate… you do need, from time to time, to reevaluate what you’re doing.”
In 2010, the Deseret News reported that as a result of Curtis’ cuts, six employees lost their jobs and that 20 employees were offered severance packages. Curtis wanted to “trim $4 million” from Provo’s 2010-2011 fiscal year, the Deseret News reported.
Curtis believes that Trump’s actions this week are in line with what the American people want.
“The American people have spoken, they want their government to be more efficient. They want us to use their taxpayer money better,” Curtis said.
And he said that choosing to reevaluate how the federal government spends money may be a better option than being forced to do so.
Curtis on Trump’s cabinet picks, TikTok
Curtis was less complimentary when talking about President Trump’s views on returning TikTok to American phones.
On the first day of his second presidency, Trump extended the deadline for a ban on the social media platform that had taken effect the week before.
At that time, the president said he wanted a chance for his advisors to look over a law that banned TikTok in the United States. For Curtis, TikTok returning without a change in ownership isn’t plausible.
“I know people love to complain that Congress never gets anything done, but we spoke in a very loud voice last year, both the House, the Senate, both Republicans and Democrats, and said it’s not acceptable to have a Chinese Communist Party have that type of data and that type of influence.”
Curtis made it clear that, while the president is “welcome to his opinion,” he “has to operate within the laws that Congress passed.”
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