Oversight of Taxpayer Dollars & Restoring USAID’s Core Mission

As the world grows more dangerous, we must ensure every dollar of American foreign assistance is used effectively to advance our national interests. During this week’s House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing, I called for urgent reforms at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to refocus it on its core mission: countering our adversaries and stabilizing fragile nations that breed terrorism.

When I was chairman of the committee last Congress, the Biden administration’s State Department notified me of many wasteful programs — both within USAID and the State Department. As chairman, I put “holds” on those programs, which meant the administration should have stopped their efforts to fund these initiatives. But they were so committed to their woke causes, they blew through my holds and spent the money anyway — bucking longstanding tradition.

For example, the administration spent $1.5 million encouraging LGBTQ immigrants in Latin America to sue primarily Catholic nations, and more than $20 thousand hosting drag shows in Ecuador. It’s wasteful and woke spending like this that gave USAID — and U.S. foreign aid in general — a black eye.

USAID was created during the Cold War to counter the Soviet Union. Today, as authoritarian regimes like China and Russia are expanding their influence around the world, we cannot afford to waste taxpayer dollars on ineffective programs that make our nation look weak. Our diplomatic might is needed to counter China’s malign Belt and Road Initiative now more than ever. 

The American people deserve to know that their hard-earned tax dollars are being used wisely. As we move forward, I will continue working with my colleagues in Congress to reform USAID and restore its focus on programs that truly advance U.S. national security and global leadership.

Click on the image above to hear my full exchange with our witness, former Rep. Ted Yoho, at the hearing.