Taiwan's opposition-controlled legislature slashed half the central government's media publicity budget, and a ruling-party councilor is pointing out that the same knife never touched Taichung's city hall.

• Opposition lawmakers cut the central government's 2026 media and policy promotion spending by 50%.
• In Taichung, the opposition instead took a lump sum off the total budget and left it to the city to decide where the cuts land.
• The city's own publicity spending — press and public relations plus policy promotion — runs to tens of millions of NT dollars, with more hidden across other departments.
• A DPP city councilor argues the city government will simply not cut its own media money.

Outlook: Expect the fight over publicity budgets to stay partisan, with each side protecting spending at the level of government it controls.