Wednesday marked one year since the Trump administration dissolved the United States Agency for International Development, or USAID, as an independent agency.
What remained of its foreign assistance work was folded into the U.S. State Department.
USAID was a central tool of American foreign policy for more than six decades, delivering humanitarian aid, fighting disease, responding to disasters and advancing U.S. interests around the world.
The administration called the move a necessary overhaul. Critics called it the dismantling of one of America’s most important instruments of global influence.
Geoff Bennett (@GeoffRBennett) discussed more with Samantha Power, the last confirmed administrator of USAID under former President Joe Biden.
Republicans had no problem giving ICE a $70 BILLION slush fund…but when it comes to spending just a small fraction of that on feeding hungry families, they say we’ve run out of money.
It’s disgusting.
State ownership of companies is communism.
Shocking to me how passive Republicans have reacted to these Trump actions. I thought they believed in capitalism, free enterprise, and the like.
Another disappointing jobs report, well under expectations. May and April were also revised lower.
What are trump and Republicans focused on?
-Erecting a giant arch to honor trump
-Putting trump’s name on passports
-Putting trump’s name on $250 bill
November is coming.
ARE WE STILL LIVING IN A DEMOCRACY?
AIPAC, and other billionaire-funded super PACs, are preparing to spend tens of millions of dollars to defeat Dr. Abdul El-Sayed in the Michigan U.S. Senate race.
Why are they so determined to defeat him?
As a doctor, he believes in healthcare as a human right. He knows firsthand that our current healthcare system is broken and that we must pass Medicare for All.
As a taxpayer, he understands that we should not be spending over a trillion dollars on the military and billions of dollars supporting the genocidal Netanyahu government in Israel.
As a supporter of working families, he knows that we have to raise the minimum wage to a living wage and make it easier for workers to join unions.
Whether it is AIPAC, AI or crypto, billionaire-funded super PACs will spend unlimited amounts of money to undermine democracy and defeat candidates who stand with working people and challenge their power. We cannot allow them to succeed.
And that is precisely why we must do everything in OUR power to elect Abdul in the Michigan Democratic U.S. Senate primary on August 4.
They have the money. We have the people.
Let’s stand together and win.
By moving to the “center,” Democrats have failed to fight the forces that led us to Trump: widening inequality and the unchecked power of billionaires.
There's no "center" anymore between a takeover of the government by oligarchs and true freedom.
Dems need to learn this.
These trees were a gift from the Japanese and the oldest in DC
When Nats Park was built, the owners purchased cherry trees specifically bred to bloom early
Planted them in the outfield and cared for them lovingly
Like these trees have been cared for for years and years
They would early in time for Opening Day
When the entire city was covered in pink blooms
Thousands of Americans plan trips to DC to see them
And the monuments
And tour the WH entering through the majestic East Wing
On tours that were managed by the First Lady’s office
Trump doesn’t give a damn about history, heritage, tradition, relationships with foreign allies
If he did, he wouldn’t have unceremoniously torn down the East Wing
Is there ANYONE in DC who will stop this bullshit?
ANYONE
The number of financial side deals the Trump family is running is so shocking it can sometimes be hard to track.
According to @Reuters, their crypto ventures alone have delivered $2.3 billion to Trump & co. while creating a similar-sized loss for investors.
PEOPLE FORGET THAT TRUMP'S FIRST TERM INCLUDED A VERY SUCCESSFUL PANDEMIC. MANY SAY IT WAS THE BEST PANDEMIC EVER. PEOPLE BEG HIM ON THE STREET, "BRING BACK COVID! IT WAS AMAZING." I HEAR HE'S WORKING ON SOMETHING. POSSIBLY MEASLES. AND KNOWING DONALD, IT WILL BE VERY SUCCESSFUL!
CEO pay is up 1,094% since 1978, while typical worker pay is up just 26%.
Why do we always hear "we can't afford to pay our workers more" but never "we can't afford to pay our CEO more"?
Wind and solar don’t just cut carbon emissions. They are also the cheapest forms of energy, period.
Our choice: double down on fossil fuels that are driving record heat across the world, or cut utility bills AND address the climate crisis by moving to sustainable energy.
Liz Oyer, former Pardon Attorney, describes how Todd Blanche fired her when she refused to do a dangerous official favor for Trump friend Mel Gibson. The actor lost his federal firearm rights after committing domestic violence. Gibson assaulted his girlfriend while she was holding their baby daughter, smashing her in the mouth, breaking her teeth, threatening her with his gun. Gibson asked Trump’s DOJ to reinstate his federal firearm rights despite his criminal conviction. Although Blanche had the power to do it on his own, he tried to force Oyer to give her stamp of approval. Not convinced of Gibson’s rehabilitation or his lack of dangerousness, and knowing that over half of women murdered in the United States are killed by a current or past intimate partner, and the presence of firearms in an abusive household increases the risk of murder by 500%, Oyer refused to have anything to do with Blanche’s dangerous and unethical suggestion. Blanche sacked her.
62 years ago today, the Civil Rights Act was signed into law because people refused to back down. That same energy is needed now.
As voting rights are under attack, we cannot afford to be complacent.
We must keep fighting until every voice is heard and every vote counts.