5 Takeaways From Congressional Discussions on USAID

Republicans and Democrats exchanged vastly different opinions about the U.S. Agency for International Aid (USAID) in a pair of events on Capitol Hill over two days. USAID was the subject of both a roundtable discussion convened by Democratic senators on Feb. 12 and a hearing held by the House Foreign Affairs Committee, chaired by Republican Congressman Brian Mast, on Feb. 13. Neither event produced official actions, but both aired the views of each party concerning the fate of the organization that has been the face of American foreign aid for 64 years. The future of USAID is uncertain after President Donald Trump on Jan. 20 ordered a 90-day pause in spending on foreign development assistance to assess whether the programs were efficient and consistent with U.S. foreign policy. Trump later closed the agency’s Washington offices and ordered that nearly all employees be placed on administrative leave at 11:59 p.m. on Feb. 7....