Mr. President Donald Trump you have a passion to be on media, then isn't it fair and apt that you get your facts straight before expressing your views and plans. Mr. President, since you and Mr. Elon Musk, your informal or formal advisor, never miss an opportunity to highlight foreign aid as a waste of national resources and it's dismantling can reduce national debt significantly, let's explore the same.
For neither you nor Mr. Musk provide clarification as to how foreign aid which totals annually around 71.9 billion can address National debt of 45 trillion or 36.2 trillion, that too retrospectively. Since, logic seems to indicate it can only prevent increase in debt, but in case it does reduce national debt retrospectively, how many years would that take.
According to Drew De Silva (2023) from the total foreign aid, the highest recipient was Ukraine with 16.6 billion USD, this was given from the aid meant for Economic Development, but it was given during war between Ukraine and Russia. It was used for issues related to context of war. During this period the maximum funds given by USAID was to Ukraine around 32 percent of its total budget.
During the same period Pentagon gave Space X 23 Million to use Starlink to support military operations in Ukraine through mid 2024.
Among the countries that received foreign aid, the second largest recipient was Israel around 3.3 billion USD, this money went towards ensuring genocide, war crimes and acts against humanity But, then you take pride in the genocidal massacre carried out by Israel.
The countries to receive foreign aid in 2024 were Ethiopia (1.8 billion) Jordan 1.7 billion, Egypt 1.4 billion, Afghanistan 1.3, Somalia 1.2 billion, Nigeria, Congo and Syria received 1.0 billion or less. Majority of the money given to Egypt was for military purposes, as was part of the money recieved by Jordan and Somalia.
Evidently foreign aid is tied to needs of US Military industry. But then in military industry there is no waste, no environmental damage in US (even when rockets are tested) or in countries where US military products make a free fall, there is no use of scarce resources like water for regular activities or those created by digitalization of military industry be it even for "cloud" ( in reality unimaginative, mundane infrastructure in an isolated area), no water wastage to keep "data cool"for military cum space exploration.
How can there be waste when conscientious individuals and agencies are the main players. For example, Mr. Elon Musk has 52 ongoing contracts with seven governmental agencies, including NASA, the Defense Department and the general service Administration.
Mr. President Donald Trump, you have made history for you will be the first President to have blatantly abused the constitution even before taking office. After receiving 250 millions USD from Mr. Elon Musk for your party during elections, upon winning you announced Mr.Elon Musk would be in charge of D.O.G.E and his specific duty to dismantle services of select govern agencies. For the first time in history the outcome and evaluation is stated in advance even before conceptual base of evaluation is looked at or thought through.
USAID, the criminal outfit?
USAID seems to be in the bad books of both you, Mr. President and Mr. Elon Musk. It is understandable why Mr. Musk considers it a criminal outfit, for Inspector General from USAID dared to plan to investigate Starlink. Unimaginable!
No wonder the first to be axed were Inspector Generals, this was done forgetting ( or remembering) the crucial role played by them in a neutral, objective and ethical evaluation.
Even business groups that deal with inanimate objects that do not fall in emergency category know that full disruption, without any concrete plan, for 10 percent reduction is foolhardy. Yet, Mr. President of US and his advisor Mr. Musk, both familiar with profit creation did just that.
What is a better way to destroy USAID, then to freeze all funds and ensure all services are suddenly brought to a halt. All towards the set goal of reducing total staff from 10,000 to 294.
Mr.President you have called USAID staff as radical left lunatics. Seriously, how many Americans in government agencies or outside are radical left in their views. One of the main goals of US interest in other countries' governance is to ensure communist ideology remain isolated to a few spots across the globe.
The present drastic measures has nothing to do with political ideology, it is a matter of pure business sense. Probably for a greater role within USAID with select Tech companies wielding greater power within USAID.
President John F. Kennedy established USAID in 1961 to unite several foreign assistance organisations and policies. It was to implement programs in global health, disaster relief, socio- economic development, environmental protection, democratic governance and education. Towards this it distributed 23 billion annually from 2001, and so the present budget not very different from your earlier term at Oval office, Mr. President.
USAID which was within US Department of State, through Foreign Affairs Reform and Restructuring Act, 1998, became an independent establishment.
Mr. President, while there have been accusations against USAID with regard to political interference it has been the opposite of your accusations. But any organisations which covers about 100 countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America, the Middle East and Eastern Europe will have issues that are difficult to accept.
Mr. President Donald Trump and Mr. Elon Musk you have been at speed with regard to disrupting services and dismantling programs. Just curious, such smart minds did not have keywords to create prompts to isolate programs that could disturb global efforts at infection or disease control. How can it be Ebola prevention programs were brought to a stand still? Stranger still the blatant assumption by Mr. Elon Musk that it was rectified.
How can it be rectified when foreign fund dispersal has been frozen? Is it that the great billionaire with excellent expertise in quantitative data assumed that screening for Ebola infection at airports is sufficient for Ebola Prevention, and the rest of the being irrelevant. Is it possible you did not understand there can be errors in testing, that there is something called window period in most cases of infection, there is scope for development of new strains ( especially if other prevention services in source countries are terminated), the possibility of new strains not being detectable and not being treatable?
Is it possible that Mr. President, you and Mr. Elon Musk live in a different bubble isolated from the world by Gulf of America.
Now let's focus on those programs that you were making mockery off, some like distribution of condoms in Gaza proved to be fabricated, same was true of others as well. While you may feel anger towards USAID staff as they signed an open letter calling for ceasefire in Gaza, does every instance have to be one to prove your ignorance.
HIV infection and other communicable diseases has been a priority for USAID, that is the reason for earlier condom distribution initiatives or strengthening male circumcision. The later has proved to prevent spread of infection across genders.
Mr. President the Foreign Assistance Programs are holistic and meant to be more in line with the way US profile has been conveyed by the US Constitution
"We the People of the United States in order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for common defence, promote the General Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity , do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America".
Molly Charles
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