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Editor, 

In 1961, President Kennedy initiated the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to implement our foreign assistance programs helping countries save millions of lives by fighting famine and eradicating illnesses like smallpox and polio. 

For much of the world, USAID assistance makes up the primary, if not the only, US contact.  USAID has become America’s superpower countering world threats by supporting local initiatives and peaceful resolutions.   

USAID’s 2023 expenditure of $38 billion was less than 1% of America’s annual spending.    

USAID has enjoyed a large bipartisan support. Congress has meticulously monitored all USAID expenditures.  Trump’s last administration attempted to reduce USAID’s budget. This move was rebuffed by Republicans who now remain silent. 

Trump’s USAID shutdown undermines our national security and global influence that holds back authoritarians from taking over poorer nations.  The Trump administration plans to reinstate only 290 out of 14,000 dismissed USAID employees. This shut down imperils millions of lives, thousands of American jobs and billions of US investments in small businesses/farms.    

Russia and China can’t wait to squash and take over USAID’s influence. In the Biden administration’s last six months, foreign propaganda campaigns targeted USAID work. Unless Trump’s actions are reversed, we will have eroded America’s standing and global security.   

Elon Musk, a billionaire, has a group of 19 – 25 year-olds supposedly saving government money by shutting down American agencies and firing thousands of US/foreign employees. These erratic, reckless actions damage America’s standing in the world and hurt millions in poorer countries depending on our food and medical assistance.   .   

Saving money requires careful, honest, and thorough review of expenditures by experienced, knowledgeable staff.   

We all need to Wake up! Please call your US Congressperson and Senators now and voice your concerns. Demand their intervention to save USAID and our much-needed world-wide humanitarian support. 

Kenneth Peterson

MAJ U.S. Army (Ret.) 

Buchanan