U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) accused the Trump administration of moving to strip homeless children of access to Head Start while continuing to pour taxpayer money into the ongoing war with Iran, using a Sunday evening post on X to call on the public to flood federal regulators with opposition before a fast-approaching comment deadline.
The Post
Murray published the post at 5:04 p.m. on September 13, 2026. The full statement, in its entirety, reads:
“Trump wants to kick kids experiencing homelessness out of Head Start while using more of your tax dollars for war. The public comment period on his cruel rule is NOW. Speak out and help SAVE Head Start.”
What Prompted the Post
Murray’s post came in direct response to reporting from The Nation detailing a proposed rule from the Department of Health and Human Services that would eliminate the 133 pages of Head Start Program Performance Standards currently in place, including provisions that specifically ease enrollment for homeless families. Those standards, finalized in 2016, allow programs to reserve enrollment slots for homeless children who arrive unexpectedly, permit families to self-attest to their homelessness in place of formal documentation, and make homeless status alone sufficient grounds for automatic eligibility.
What Head Start Is
Head Start is the federal government’s free early childhood education program, serving low-income children from birth through age five and their families through comprehensive health, nutrition, and family-support services alongside preschool instruction. Congress reauthorized the program in 2007 with a specific mandate that providers prioritize children experiencing homelessness, while leaving HHS to determine the operational details through federal standards. Enrollment of homeless children in the program has grown substantially since that mandate took effect, rising from 26,235 children in the 2006–07 school year to 60,221 in the 2024–25 school year, according to figures cited in The Nation’s reporting.
How the Rule Would Affect Homeless Families
Under the administration’s proposal, the accommodations that allow homeless families to enroll without full paperwork would disappear along with the broader regulatory framework. Barbara Duffield, executive director of SchoolHouse Connection, told The Nation that eliminating those standards would functionally end the practices even though nothing in the underlying 2007 statute is changing, because “Head Start is a very compliance-focused program” and providers are unlikely to act without explicit regulatory permission. HHS’s own proposed rule acknowledges that removing self-attestation would make roughly 8 percent of currently enrolled children ineligible.
A Pattern of Warnings From Murray
Sunday’s post is the latest in a sustained campaign Murray has waged against the administration’s handling of Head Start. In August, Murray joined Senator Ben Ray Luján and child care advocates for a press conference responding to the same proposed rule, declaring that “President Trump has all but declared war on Head Start” and stating, “This rule is not final. There is a public comment period. I want parents to weigh in. I want teachers to weigh in.”
Citing a Broader Pattern of Cuts
In that same August statement, Murray connected the proposed rule to what she described as a series of administration actions against the program, saying: “Whether it was his leaked memo to eliminate Head Start, his illegal impoundments, or his decimation of the Office of Head Start—President Trump has all but declared war on Head Start and affordable child care in America.” She noted that a leaked memo had previously indicated the administration intended to eliminate Head Start entirely as part of its fiscal year 2026 budget request, an effort that was ultimately dropped after public backlash.
Impoundment Findings Add to the Dispute
Murray’s criticism of the administration’s Head Start record has also been bolstered by a Government Accountability Office decision concluding that the administration illegally impounded Head Start funding in violation of the Impoundment Control Act. Responding to that finding, Murray said: “Today, a top government watchdog confirmed what we’ve known for months: President Trump has illegally held up vast sums of funding for Head Start programs across America—blocking funding that working families count on every day for pre-K and so many critical services Head Start offers.”
Tying the Rule to War Spending
The second half of Murray’s Sunday post — accusing the administration of prioritizing “more of your tax dollars for war” — reflects criticism she has repeated throughout 2026 as the administration has sought expanded funding tied to the war with Iran. In June, responding to a Trump request for $87.6 billion in supplemental war funding, Murray said: “This president is telling the American people there’s no money for health care, housing, or child care—but there should be endless taxpayer dollars to fund wars they don’t support.”
Pressing Pentagon Leadership Directly
Murray has repeated versions of this argument directly to administration officials in hearings. Questioning Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth in July over the same supplemental request, Murray noted that the Pentagon had already received a record $839 billion for fiscal year 2026 in addition to $150 billion from the prior reconciliation package, telling Hegseth that “despite that, you are here today asking for tens of billions of dollars more for things that you’ve already asked for in your FY27 request or that have nothing to do with Iran.”
Gas Prices and Household Costs
Murray has also linked the cost of the war directly to household budgets in her public remarks. At a Senate Appropriations Defense Subcommittee hearing, she told Hegseth: “Right now, Mr. Secretary, people are paying four, five, even six, seven dollars for gas—and American taxpayers are now on the hook as well for paying for this disastrous war. You’re spending families’ hard-earned tax dollars on a war that many strongly oppose.”
A Trillion-Dollar Defense Request
Murray has repeatedly contrasted the scale of the administration’s defense requests with its posture on domestic programs. Questioning OMB Director Russ Vought in April over the FY27 budget, Murray obtained confirmation that the administration was seeking $1.5 trillion in combined defense spending, calling the underlying document one that reflects poor priorities: “A budget is really an expression of our morals and our values, and frankly, looking at Trump’s latest budget, I don’t see it as a very moral budget. We’re cutting tens of billions of dollars from housing, and health care, and education so we can spend half a trillion dollars more to fund Trump’s foreign wars.”
Congress’s Limited Options
Advocates quoted in The Nation’s reporting expressed hope that Congress could intervene to block the finalized rule, though the paths available are narrow. Members could attempt to attach a prohibition to must-pass government funding legislation, but the Senate has already passed a continuing resolution funding the government only through December 11, and the House has not yet passed its own version. Should the rule be finalized, Congress could also attempt to overturn it under the Congressional Review Act, though that would require either President Trump’s signature or a veto override.
The Comment Period and What Comes Next
The public comment period on the proposed rule runs through October 6, and advocates told The Nation that submissions were already outpacing typical early volume, with more than 3,000 comments logged within the first two weeks. Once the comment period closes, HHS must review and respond before publishing a final rule, which would then take effect 60 days later unless blocked by a court. Katie Hamm, a former deputy assistant secretary for early childhood development under President Biden, said the current administration has moved through past rulemaking reviews faster than prior administrations, suggesting finalization could come within months rather than the year such reviews have sometimes taken.
Advocates and Families Await Outcome
Families and providers directly affected by the standards have described the stakes in personal terms. Millicah Wanjiru, a homeless mother enrolled in an Early Head Start parenting program in Seattle through her shelter, told The Nation that losing access to the program “would punish us,” adding, “We definitely need Head Start.” Advocates like Duffield have argued that the existing standards do more than provide preschool access, framing the program as a tool that helps stabilize homeless families altogether: “Head Start ends homelessness.”