In a marathon day in the U.S. Senate on Tuesday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio faced a barrage of pointed questions, along with accusations that he illegally dismantled USAID and bears responsibility for aid cuts that have led to thousands of deaths.
Rubio defended his decisions, saying that he was “very proud” of the changes the administration has made to USAID, such as cutting funds for male circumcisions in Mozambique, psychosocial support, a big cats YouTube channel, and social cohesion in Mali — “whatever the hell that means.”
But he said the massive cuts to USAID programs, the merging of what remains into the State Department, and the reorganization of his own department doesn’t mean that the U.S. is abandoning foreign aid.
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About the author
Adva Saldinger@AdvaSal
Adva Saldinger is a Senior Reporter at Devex where she covers development finance, as well as U.S. foreign aid policy. Adva explores the role the private sector and private capital play in development and authors the weekly Devex Invested newsletter bringing the latest news on the role of business and finance in addressing global challenges. A journalist with more than 10 years of experience, she has worked at several newspapers in the U.S. and lived in both Ghana and South Africa.
