Mar 10 Secretary of State Rubio says purge of USAID programs complete, with more than 80% of agency’s programs gone By Ellen Knickmeyer, Associated Press Rubio made the announcement in a post on X marking one of his relatively few public comments on what has been a historic shift away from U.S. foreign aid and development. Continue reading
Mar 06 Trump administration must pay nearly $2B in USAID and State Department debts, judge rules By Ellen Knickmeyer, Associated Press A federal judge on Thursday gave the Trump administration until Monday to pay nearly $2 billion in debts to partners of the U.S. Agency for International Development and the State Department, thawing the administration’s six-week funding freeze on all foreign… Continue reading
Mar 01 Trump cut lifesaving foreign aid as State Department planned to buy expensive art for embassies By Laura Barrón-López The intended purchases, which total nearly $2 million, were described by a U.S. government official with information about the State Department’s spending plans. Continue reading
Feb 03 WATCH: USAID ‘attitude’ not aligned with U.S. national interest, Rubio says By Associated Press Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke for the first time about thousands of USAID employees who have been laid off and programs that have been shut down. Continue reading
Feb 03 Musk says Trump ‘agreed’ USAID should be shut down, staffers told to stay out of agency’s headquarters By Ellen Knickmeyer, Associated Press Staffers of the U.S. Agency for International Development have been instructed to stay out of its Washington headquarters, and yellow police tape and officers have blocked the lobby. Continue reading
Jan 27 Spat over deportation flights leads U.S. to cancel hundreds of visa appointments in Colombia By Manuel Rueda, Associated Press Dozens of Colombians arrived at the U.S. Embassy in Bogota and were handed letters by local staff that said their appointments had been canceled “due to the Colombian government’s refusal to accept repatriation flights of Colombian nationals.”… Continue reading
Jan 24 Watch 2:42 State Department suspends nearly all U.S. foreign aid for 3 months By Nick Schifrin, Dan Sagalyn The State Department suspended all foreign assistance around the world for at least three months. That affects tens of billions of dollars on programs that run from military assistance to Ukraine to supporting police in Mexico who interdict fentanyl coming… Continue watching
Jan 21 WATCH: Vance swears in Marco Rubio as secretary of state By Associated Press Vice President JD Vance, who served as a senator alongside Marco Rubio, called him a “bipartisan solutions seeker.”… Continue reading
Jan 21 WATCH: Rubio gives first remarks after confirmation as Trump’s secretary of state By Associated Press Rubio said Trump’s primary priority will be furthering the United States’ interests and that anything the government and State Department do must make the country stronger, safer or more prosperous. Continue reading
Jan 17 WATCH: Blinken delivers remarks at State Department farewell event By Associated Press Blinken faced two significant interruptions at his final briefing to reporters in office, both from people accusing him of complicity in Israeli violence against Palestinian civilians in Gaza. Continue reading