Donald Trump received applause from his fellow Republicans when he honored 13-year-old cancer survivor Devarjaye “DJ” Daniel by making him an honorary member of the U.S. Secret Service. The moment was emotional, and DJ’s inspiring story moved many. However, behind the celebrations, critics pointed out a deeper issue—Trump’s policies have cut funding for pediatric cancer research, affecting children like DJ in a much more serious way.
During his first Congressional address of his second term, Trump introduced DJ Daniel to a joint session. DJ, who has been fighting brain and spine cancer, has always dreamed of working in law enforcement. His dream started in 2017 when, as a child, he and his family stayed in a shelter during Hurricane Harvey in Houston. Three police officers brought them pizza, and from that moment, DJ wanted to become a cop.
He was also inspired by another young cancer patient, 7-year-old Abigail Arias, who had the same dream. Abigail was made an honorary officer in Freeport, Texas, before she passed away in 2019. DJ wanted to follow in her footsteps, and after being sworn in by hundreds of law enforcement agencies across the country, he reached his biggest milestone yet—becoming the youngest honorary Secret Service agent.
During Tuesday’s event, Secret Service Director Sean Curran presented DJ with his official credentials. The Republican side of Congress stood and applauded, but many Democrats remained seated. Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt later criticized them, saying, “Democrats reminded us they are the party of insanity and hate—they could not even clap for a child.”
However, Trump’s critics quickly explained why they didn’t join the celebration. They pointed out that Trump, along with Elon Musk, had recently cut crucial funding for pediatric cancer research. The program, which had been helping develop more than 60 drugs for children with cancer and other life-threatening illnesses, was eliminated despite costing taxpayers nothing.
Nancy Goodman, who lost her 10-year-old son Jacob to brain cancer in 2009, has been fighting for pediatric cancer research ever since. She founded Kids v Cancer and successfully helped pass the Give Kids A Chance Act in 2011, which ensured funding for new cancer treatments for children. Speaking to The Daily Beast, she shared her son’s story. “Jacob was a healthy kid until he turned eight. He wanted to be an NBA player or a rock star. Then, one day, he started throwing up and having headaches. Six weeks later, he had surgery for brain cancer. He was profoundly neurologically impaired for two years. And then he died.”
Since then, Goodman has dedicated her life to helping sick children. She worked to get kids with cancer to Capitol Hill, where they would personally ask lawmakers to support funding for treatments. “It’s really hard to look a terminally ill kid in the eyes and say, ‘No, I’m not going to help you.’ So that’s what we count on,” she explained.
The Give Kids A Chance Act was due for renewal in 2024, but Trump’s administration removed it from the budget in December. It was left out of a massive government funding resolution that was originally 1,547 pages long but was reduced to just 116 pages. Among the cuts were several healthcare provisions, including those funding pediatric cancer research. Elon Musk pointed out that many programs were removed, but the decision to cut funding for sick children was particularly controversial.
Goodman acknowledged the honor given to DJ Daniel but criticized Trump for failing to support real action against childhood cancer. “If the president really wants to help kids with cancer, making DJ an honorary Secret Service agent isn’t going to do it,” she said.
She also urged Trump to stop pushing for Medicaid cuts, as many children rely on it for medical care. “Half of all kids in the United States are on Medicaid. Cutting it would seriously hurt children with life-threatening illnesses,” she warned.
While DJ’s moment in Congress was touching, critics argue that real support for children like him should come in the form of restored funding for cancer research—not just symbolic gestures.
