Latest news with #UnitedStatesAgencyforInternationalDevelopment
LeMonde
a day ago
- Politics
- LeMonde
In Côte d'Ivoire, women and sexual minorities are left vulnerable as the US withdraws aid
The days when Ivanka Trump, the daughter of the US president, visited Côte d'Ivoire to promote women's rights now seem distant. Dressed in a pristine white dress, Trump toured the cocoa plantations in the Adzopé region, North of Abidjan, and danced with the women who worked there. That was in 2019, during her father's first term, and she was accompanied by Mark Green, the head of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) − the same agency that Donald Trump dismantled on the first day of his second term. Six years ago, Ivanka Trump came to support the Women's Global Development and Prosperity Initiative, which aimed to foster economic empowerment for 50 million women, and announced $2 million in funding for savings groups run by cocoa farmers. "When women are free to thrive, they bring national stability, as well as more jobs and economic growth," she argued. Her visit boosted USAID's efforts in this field, all of which were abruptly ended in January. "We were told to immediately stop all activities," said Francine Aka-Anghui, former president of the Association of Women Lawyers of Côte d'Ivoire, who worked on one of these projects. "For our beneficiaries, hope disappeared overnight." "The end of American aid is catastrophic for African women," said Ivorian feminist Sylvia Apata. "USAID enabled significant progress in women's rights on the continent. Unless African governments take responsibility – and I doubt they will – we are going to witness a historic setback."
LeMonde
2 days ago
- Politics
- LeMonde
In western Madagascar, 1,000 farmers have been abandoned after USAID withdrawal
Bordeaux (who only wished to give his first name), a farmer with sharp features, does not know who Donald Trump is, but he knows that everything stopped for him in February. Suddenly, gone were the promises of a permanent house, enough seed for five years, fertilizers, farming equipment and technical support to cultivate a 2-hectare field provided by the government − not to mention a health center and school for his children. It was based on these promises that, two years ago, Bordeaux had agreed to leave the Menabe Antimena Protected Area – the last refuge of Madame Berthe's mouse lemur, the smallest lemur in the world – to settle in Bezeky, the ultimate destination of a relocation project funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), which has since been dismantled by the American president. Bezeky was one component of the Mikajy project – meaning "sustainable management" in Malagasy – launched in 2018 by the US to slow the massive destruction of the dry forests in western Madagascar, caused by the cultivation of peanuts and maize by migrants, most of whom came from the drought-stricken South of the country.
LeMonde
3 days ago
- Politics
- LeMonde
Six months later, Trump's dismantling of foreign aid has had devastating effects in Africa
There was no turning back. Despite a wave of protests sparked by the announcement of the suspension of American aid on January 20, just after Donald Trump took office for his second term at the White House, the decision was implemented without the hesitation he has sometimes shown, as in his conduct of the country's trade war with the rest of the world. On March 10, without waiting for the end of the 90-day freeze intended to review the use of funds committed by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), Washington confirmed that 83% of programs would be abandoned and that the independent agency, created in 1961, would be closed. The agency officially shut its doors on July 1, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio took the opportunity to eliminate any remaining doubts about the US determination to break with the policy previously pursued by what had been the largest donor of official development assistance. "Beyond creating a globe-spanning NGO Industrial complex at taxpayer expense, USAID has little to show since the end of the Cold War. Development objectives have rarely been met, instability has often worsened, and anti-American sentiment has only grown. Americans should not pay taxes to fund failing governments in faraway lands," he said, singling out Africa, which, in his view, has shown particularly little gratitude for American generosity.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
House passes Trump's rescissions request after Epstein fallout delays vote
Washington — House Republicans approved a package after midnight Friday to claw back $9 billion in foreign aid and public broadcasting funding, sending it to President Trump's desk. Congress beat a Friday end-of-day deadline to pass the bill, which is known as a rescissions request, after which the money would have had to be spent as originally intended. Efforts to release files related to child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein stalled movement on the bill for hours. The House combined the vote on final passage with a procedural vote, allowing members to pass the package quickly. It passed in a mostly party-line vote, with 216 voting in favor and 213 against. Two Republicans opposed it: Reps. Mike Turner of Ohio and Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania. The bill targets roughly $8 billion for foreign assistance programs, including the United States Agency for International Development, or USAID. The package also includes about $1 billion in funding cuts for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which supports public radio and television stations, including NPR and PBS. Mr. Trump hailed the vote on Truth Social early Friday morning, highlighting the cuts to public media funding. "REPUBLICANS HAVE TRIED DOING THIS FOR 40 YEARS, AND FAILED….BUT NO MORE," he wrote. "THIS IS BIG!!!" House Speaker Mike Johnson told reporters early Friday he's "delighted to send that over to the president's desk for signature, and he'll sign that quickly." Before the floor vote, the package had to get through the House Rules Committee, where there was heated debate on Democrats' demands for a vote on an Epstein-related measure. All but one Republican on the committee voted against similar amendments when they were first presented earlier this week, further fueling criticism from those who want documents on Epstein released. The controversy has divided Mr. Trump's base since his administration released a memo earlier this month saying that Epstein had no "client list" and died by suicide in 2019. Some Republicans have pushed for more disclosures in the Epstein case, though Mr. Trump has called the controversy a "hoax." Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, defended the GOP committee members on Thursday afternoon, saying they were unfairly taking heat. "They're trying to stick to their job and move the procedural rules to the floor so we can do our work and get the rescissions done for the American people," Johnson said. Early Friday, Johnson claimed the White House and House Republicans are on the same page on how to handle the controversy surrounding the Epstein files. "There's no daylight between the president and House Republicans on transparency, and he's been very clear that he wants all credible information, credible evidence, to be turned over to the people, so that the people can decide. We trust the American people and their judgment." Democrats wanted a vote on a bipartisan measure introduced by Republican Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky and Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna of California that would force the Justice Department to release Epstein-related files within 30 days. Instead, Republicans voted against the effort and offered a resolution that carries no legal weight to make the files public. Rep. Jim McGovern of Massachusetts, the top Democrat on the House Rules Committee, noted that there would be no recourse if the Trump administration did not comply with the non-binding resolution. "This resolution they're offering is a cover vote and I'll be surprised if they even bring it to the floor," McGovern said. Republican Rep. Virginia Foxx of North Carolina, the committee chair, said it would be up to the majority leader whether the resolution receives a floor vote. As the committee debated the release of the files, Mr. Trump announced that he asked Attorney General Pam Bondi "to produce any and all pertinent Grand Jury testimony, subject to Court approval." The request came after the Wall Street Journal published a letter Mr. Trump allegedly wrote to Epstein for his birthday in 2003, which the president called "fake." House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries would not say Thursday afternoon whether he planned to delay a final vote past the deadline by exercising his right under House rules to speak for as long as he'd like, a power he used to make a record-breaking speech earlier this month. "I expect that I will speak longer than a minute," the New York Democrat quipped. Jeffries ended up speaking for about 15 minutes. Senate passed bill early Thursday after criticism After an hourslong vote series, the Senate narrowly passed an amended version of Mr. Trump's rescissions request earlier Thursday, sending it to the House, which approved a larger package of cuts last month. The Senate version is about $400 million smaller than last month's House version, after the Trump administration agreed not to cut funding for a global AIDS prevention program to alleviate some of the concerns of Republican dissenters. Some senators also worried about the implications of PBS and NPR cuts for rural areas, where many residents depend on public radio stations for emergency alerts. The administration promised to find funding elsewhere to alleviate the cuts to the rural stations to win over critics. In a statement, the president of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting said the decision to eliminate its federal funding will force many local public radio stations to shut down and have "profound, lasting, negative consequences for every American." Though all but two Republican senators ended up supporting final passage, some said they had reservations about doing so, especially because they had not received details from the administration about how the broader cuts would impact specific programs. "I suspect we're going to find out there are some things that we're going to regret," Republican Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina said Wednesday before voting for the package. Republican Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska both criticized Congress, saying it was undermining its budget oversight role by ceding to the White House's, and arguing that any funding cuts should be sorted out during the annual appropriations process. Collins and Murkowski both voted against the package. Son of man who was violently detained by ICE reacts after release Wall Street Journal reports Trump sent "bawdy" birthday letter to Epstein, Trump threatens to sue 7.3 magnitude earthquake hits southern Alaska
CBS News
7 days ago
- Business
- CBS News
Senate approves $9 billion in cuts to foreign aid, public broadcasting funding
Washington — The Senate passed President Trump's request to rescind $9 billion in foreign aid and public broadcasting funding early Thursday, culminating an hours-long "vote-a-rama" and sending it back to the House ahead of a Friday deadline. In a 51-48 vote, Republicans Susan Collins, of Maine, and Lisa Murkowski, of Alaska, joined Democrats in opposing the package. Vice President JD Vance, who cast two tie-breaking votes Tuesday for the measure to clear procedural hurdles, was not needed for final passage. Democratic Sen. Tina Smith of Minnesota was hospitalized and missed the vote. Both chambers need to approve the request before it expires at the end of the week, or the funds will have to be spent as lawmakers previously intended. The House approved the original $9.4 billion rescissions request last month, but it faced pushback in the Senate, where some Republicans opposed slashing global health assistance and funding for local radio and television stations. The Senate began the lengthy vote series Wednesday afternoon, rejecting dozens of amendments on retaining international aid and sparing public broadcasting from cuts. The Senate's version targets roughly $8 billion for foreign assistance programs, including the United States Agency for International Development, or USAID. The package also includes about $1 billion in cuts for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which supports public radio and television stations, including NPR and PBS. Senate Republicans met with Mr. Trump's budget director, Russell Vought, on Tuesday as GOP leaders worked to get holdouts on board ahead of the procedural votes later in the day. Vought left the meeting saying there would be a substitute amendment that would eliminate $400 million in cuts to an AIDS prevention program, one of Collins' main concerns. Senate Majority Leader John Thune, a South Dakota Republican, said he hoped the House would accept the "small modification." When asked about the $400 million change, House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, told reporters "we wanted them to pass it unaltered like we did." "We need to claw back funding, and we'll do as much as we're able," Johnson added. But the change did not satisfy Collins and Murkowski. The holdouts said the administration's request lacks details about how the cuts will be implemented. "To carry out our Constitutional responsibility, we should know exactly what programs are affected and the consequences of rescissions," Collins said in a statement Tuesday. In a floor speech ahead of the procedural votes, Murkowski also said Congress should not give up its budget oversight. "I don't want us to go from one reconciliation bill to a rescissions package to another rescissions package to a reconciliation package to a continuing resolution," she said. "We're lawmakers. We should be legislating. What we're getting now is a direction from the White House and being told, 'This is the priority, we want you to execute on it, we'll be back with you with another round.' I don't accept that." Cuts to local radio and television stations, especially in rural areas where they are critical for communicating emergency messages, were another point of contention in the Senate. Republican Sen. Mike Rounds, of South Dakota, who had concerns about the cuts, said funding would be reallocated from climate funds to keep stations in tribal areas operating "without interruption." Republican Sen. Thom Tillis, of North Carolina, who voted for the package, said he expected that Congress would have to try later to fix some of the cuts once their impacts are determined. "I suspect we're going to find out there are some things that we're going to regret," he said Wednesday on the Senate floor. "I suspect that when we do we'll have to come back and fix it, similar to what I'm trying to do with the bill I voted against a couple of weeks ago — the so-called Big, Beautiful Bill, that I think we're going to have to go back and work on."
