Posted on 03/01/2025 7:19:20 AM PST by Twotone
President Donald Trump's State Department completed its review of U.S. foreign aid, identifying nearly 15,000 grants worth $60 billion for elimination, an internal memo reviewed by the Washington Free Beacon shows.
The review pertained to foreign aid that flowed from both the State Department and the U.S. Agency for International Development. Within the State Department, auditors reviewed more than 9,100 grants worth an estimated $15.9 billion. It identified 4,100 of those grants worth $4.4 billion for elimination.
The lion's share of the grants identified for elimination, then, came from the USAID side, where Trump administration officials moved to slash 5,800 grants valued at $54 billion. That marks a 92 percent reduction in USAID's multi-year grant spending, according to the State Department memo.
The "exhaustive review" reflects the monumental changes underway at USAID under Trump.
In late January, Secretary of State Marco Rubio unveiled a 90-day freeze on foreign aid aimed at allowing the administration to review programs for their consistency with "U.S. foreign policy under the America First agenda." Under former president Joe Biden, USAID funneled scores of grants to foreign nations aimed at advancing "environmental justice" and "LGBTQI+ Inclusive Development," among other left-wing priorities. Trump went on to name Rubio USAID's acting administrator as he explored formally placing the agency within the State Department.
The fate of the agency—as well as the funding cuts—remain in limbo. A number of foreign aid groups and contractors sued the administration earlier this month to resume the paused payments. A Washington, D.C., judge ordered the administration to make nearly $2 billion in taxpayer-funded foreign aid payments by Wednesday's end, though federal attorneys filed a motion on Wednesday urging an appeals court to freeze the order. Roughly two hours before the midnight deadline, the Supreme Court temporarily blocked it, putting it on hold until the court weighs in further.
It is no surprise that the majority of the State Department’s cuts center around USAID’s international programming. In addition to its climate and inclusivity spending, the aid group has funneled millions of dollars to anti-Israel advocacy groups and entities linked to terrorism, causing internal friction across multiple administrations, the Free Beacon reported earlier this month.
Going forward, the State Department will "reform the way the United States delivers foreign assistance" following "decades of institutional drift," according to its Wednesday memo.
"Every dollar we spend, every program we fund, must be justified with the answer to three simple questions: Does it make America safe? Does it make America stronger? Does it make America more prosperous?" the memo concludes.
Upon taking office, the Trump administration quickly set its sights on USAID, forwarding plans to shrink its workforce from around 10,000 staffers to roughly 600.
In the early days of the administration's foreign funding freeze, Rubio allowed career staffers to submit waivers for projects they felt were aligned with the "America First" agenda. Those staffers went on to submit some 200 waivers for programs that would have cost taxpayers $1.2 billion in a single week, including some that pertained to "environmental justice" and "LGBTQI+ Inclusive Development," the Free Beacon reported. The waiver requests exposed a severe disconnect between Trump’s team and career USAID employees.
Under Biden, USAID played a central role in the federal government's promotion of diversity, equity, and inclusion, including in foreign countries. The agency championed such funding under its 2022-2030 climate strategy, a $150 billion "whole-of-agency approach" that aimed to create an "equitable world with net-zero greenhouse gas emissions."
In 2023, for instance, Biden’s USAID allocated up to $1 million in taxpayer funds on a project to help disabled people in Tajikistan become "climate leaders," the Free Beacon reported at the time.
Just before leaving office, the Biden administration pushed out more than $1 million in funding for additional DEI programs abroad. The cash allowed USAID to "engage with Indigenous-led institutions to implement an Indigenous language technology program" in Guatemala, where nearly 95 percent of residents speak Spanish.
Other grants empowered Palestinian activist groups linked to various terror outfits.
A November 2022 grant sent $78,000 to the Community Development and Continuing Education Institute, a Palestinian activist group based in the West Bank. Its leaders praised a terrorist who murdered a U.S. military attaché as a "hero fighter," the Free Beacon reported.
Just six days before Hamas’s Oct. 7 assault on Israel, meanwhile, USAID awarded more than $900,000 "to a terror charity in Gaza involved with the son of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh," a watchdog report obtained by the Free Beacon found. USAID earmarked the funds for the Bayader Association for Environment and Development, a Gaza-based humanitarian group that was said to be "in close cooperation with [the] Hamas regime." USAID would not comment at the time on whether the money was subject to oversight or vetted to ensure it did not benefit Hamas.
As taxpayer cash flowed from USAID to foreign groups, federal oversight authorities determined that the agency had persistent issues combating "corruption, abuse, and fraud." USAID also came under fire last year for failing to "prevent the diversion of assistance to Hamas and other terrorist organizations," according to an inspector general report.
How awesome would it be to use that money here. Lots of things it could be used for. Veterans care and support? As I recall, we signed a blank check to be used as needed to the U.S. government. Up to being maimed or killed.....just sayin’.
Rubio (with DOGE support) is exceeding expectations.
Now the rest of the cabinet needs to follow his excellent example.
The level of corruption is truly overwhelming. In the midst of this cesspool of criminals apparently not one government employee was with enough integrity to report this waste and corruption to the inspector general or to congress. That is an indictment of these government worker parasites. Firing all of them would not make up for what they have done through their perfidy. These people survive only because they are sociopaths who have neither conscience or integrity. Pox upon them.
On Friday, October 20th, 2023, the Biden Administration sent a Supplemental Funding Request to the Congress that contains key priorities for the American Jewish community:
$14.3 Billion in Emergency assistance to Israel: This emergency assistance will bolster Israel’s ability to defend herself and replenish vital defense systems, including the Iron Dome and David’s Sling missile defense programs.
Biden increased Funding for FEMA’s Nonprofit Security Grant Program (NSGP): Jewish communities are in a state of elevated readiness and have already been forced to increase their security measures.
FEMA’s Nonprofit “Security Grant Program” helps ensure the safety and security of Jewish institutions. The increased funding included in Biden’s Supplemental Budget Request will help bolster Jewish community’s capacity to protect itself at this challenging time.
The article's phrase speaks: "genuine humanitarian relief." What has been identified by the State Department SO FAR seems quite the same gaming of the system which likely all government agencies have been working at under Democrats and RINOs.
Add in those "charitable" tax-exempt entities working around the clock on political goals outside the US as inside, and behind the scenes it is assured a great many "fat cats" atop all these schemes will be angry, finding their "patsy" no longer a patsy.
It would be wonderful if our government would revise the tax-exempt laws/definitions to strip away all political activities.
So many suckers at US teets we gotta shut it down. But, then again, the idea of the world elite is to take the US down from within. No one wants to go to war with us. But sending our dollars out of the county is how we get slowly bled out. When we are making, selling and buying our own goods and services the money stays in our economy. The exact OPPOSITE of the plan to take us down economically. That’s what Trump understand and why they hate him so much?
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT WARNING:
SOCIAL SECURITY FOR AMERICANS RUNNING OUT OF MONEY
BUT PLENTY OF MONEY FOR FOREIGNERS, TERRORISTS,
THE WELFARE STATE AND THE “GREEN NEW DEAL”
Billions of taxpayer dollars for welfare
Billions of taxpayer dollars for the Ukraine
Billions of taxpayer dollars for the Illegal aliens invading America
Billions of taxpayer dollars for Palestinian and GAZA muslim terrorists
Billions of taxpayer dollars for EV charging stations that never got built
Billions of taxpayer dollars for military equipment handed over to the Taliban
Billions of taxpayer dollars for Iran to finance terrorism and develop nuclear weapons
Billions of tax dollars and arms to Ukraine
Billions to tax dollars and arms to Israel
$60B, chop, chop, chop!! Reroute that money to the VA, or put it toward our national debt.
THIS is especially corrupt when you think how Joe and Harris came out with their lip service about US allegiance to Israel...
“… the majority of the State Department’s cuts center around USAID’s international programming. In addition to its climate and inclusivity spending, the aid group has funneled millions of dollars to anti-Israel advocacy groups and entities linked to terrorism, causing internal friction across multiple administrations…”
In 2024, Biden gave Israel another $12.5 billion dollars. Well, it was an election year and Harris needed votes.
This enthusiastic reception by tens of thousands of die-hard Democrats at the convention, was a faithful reflection of where the base of the party stands on Israeli issues.
And now we hear that drjill Biden has been pressuring her husband on Israel’s war on Hamas, saying. “Stop it. Stop it now, Joe.” At a Ramadan event at the White House, Joe Biden reportedly told attendees about “Jill’s sophisticated geopolitical advice.”
Progressive agitator Michael Moore told Democrat Biden to stop “funding Israeli genocide.” Moore lacerated Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. “How many times can Netanyahu flaunt your rules, ignore your advice, and spit in your face? He came to Our House, the People’s House, and spewed hate and violence.”
Senator Bernie Sanders criticized Biden’s approval of sending more weapons to Israel. “The US cannot beg Netanyahu to stop bombing civilians one day and the next send him thousands more 2,000 lb. bombs that can level entire city blocks. This is obscene,” Sanders said on X, sharing the report of Washington Post. “We must end our complicity: No more bombs to Israel,” Sanders reiterated.
“CBS Mornings” TV anchor Tony Dokoupil got into trouble for pressing Ta-Nehisi Coates, about his virulent anti-Israel views on the Middle East conflict, and his questioning Israel’s right to defend itself.
CBS’s pending sale to a studio run by movie producer David Ellison of “Top Gun: Maverick” fame was jittery. David’s father is Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest men, and one of the most pro-Israel executives in corporate America — he’s best buds with Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu.
Increasingly, it sounds like a great majority of those programs and NGOs were merely money-laundering schemes that funneled the money right back into the DNC, and various politicians’ pockets.
Thanks for your post.
Nice to get good news in the morning (8:00am here on the Left Coast).
Kind of amazing how Americans stoically endured deprivation to fund “pride” parades in Karachi.
Shouldn't that be "institutional grift"?
y/v/w
I am thrilled at winning every day!
This country is broke from overspending. How about we simply do not spend it?
Or spent on “new, made up” holidays.
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