U.S. Secretary of State Nominee Rex Tillerson Throws Support Behind National Endowment for the Arts

As BWW reported last week, the Trump Administration plans to reduce federal spending by $10.5 trillion over the next 10 years. Along with significant cuts to the departments of Commerce and Energy, Transportation, Justice and State, the administration also plans to eliminate the National Endowment for the Arts and National Endowment for the Humanities entirely.

Earlier this week, former ExxonMobil CEO Rex Tillerson, who has been nominated by President Trump to serve as U.S. Secretary of State, turned to Twitter to throw his support behind the NEA, sharing his belief that "an artless nation is a spiritless nation." Next week, the U.S. Senate will vote on Tillerson's nomination. Check out his tweets below:

Last week, a petition was created seeking to preserve the National Endowment for the Arts and can now be found at WhiteHouse.gov. In addition, a Change.org petition is also circulating, with 11,229 signatures toward its 15,000 goal.

The Tony Award winning National Endowment for the Arts was created by an act of the U.S. Congress in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal government. It's purpose is to promote and strengthen the creative capacity of communities by providing all Americans with diverse opportunities for arts participation. Click here to learn more about how the National Endowment for the Arts benefits theater across the country.