Secretary of State Marco Rubio made it very clear that the days of NGOs, an integral part of the ‘Foreign Aid Industrial Complex’, sending aid often in direct opposition to America’s priorities, are over.
Rubio told reporters, “Foreign aid should be used for the purpose of furthering the national interest. That doesn’t mean we don’t care about human rights. That doesn’t mean we don’t care about starvation. That doesn’t mean we don’t care about hunger. That doesn’t mean we don’t care about humanitarian need.”
“What it does mean, however, is that even foreign aid, which is NOT charity – it is an act of the US taxpayer.”
Watch:
BREAKING: Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirms he is ENDING the NGO foreign aid industrial complex
“Foreign aid should be used for the purpose of furthering the national interest. That doesn’t mean we don’t care about human rights. That doesn’t mean we don’t care about… pic.twitter.com/5IlZg9OYRi
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) December 19, 2025
In July, Rubio signaled the changes when he announced that USAID would no longer send foreign assistance across the globe.
Rubio noted that USAID had, for decades, failed to ensure the programs it funded actually supported America’s interests.
The State Department took over foreign assistance programs beginning on July 1.
A State Department substack from July notes:
“Every public servant has an obligation to American citizens to ensure any programs they fund advance our nation’s interests. During the Trump Administration’s thorough review of thousands of programs, and over $715 billion in inflation-adjusted spending over the decades, it became apparent the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) fell well below this standard.”
“USAID had decades and a near-infinite taxpayer budget to advance American influence, promote economic development worldwide, and allow billions to stand on their own two feet.”
“Beyond creating a globe-spanning NGO industrial complex at taxpayer expense, USAID has little to show since the end of the Cold War. Development objectives have rarely been met, instability has often worsened, and anti-American sentiment has only grown.”
“On the global stage, the countries that benefit the most from our generosity usually fail to reciprocate. For example, in 2023, sub-Saharan African nations voted with the United States only 29 percent of the time on essential resolutions at the UN despite receiving $165 billion in outlays since 1991. That’s the lowest rate in the world.”
“Over the same period, more than $89 billion invested in the Middle East and North Africa left the U.S. with lower favorability ratings than China in every nation but Morocco.”
“The agency’s expenditure of $9.3 billion in Gaza and the West Bank since 1991, whose beneficiaries included allies of Hamas, has produced grievances rather than gratitude towards the United States. The only ones living well were the executives of the countless NGOs, who often enjoyed five-star lifestyles funded by American taxpayers, while those they purported to help fell further behind.”
“This era of government-sanctioned inefficiency has officially come to an end.”
“Under the Trump Administration, we will finally have a foreign funding mission in America that prioritizes our national interests. As of July 1st, USAID will officially cease to implement foreign assistance. Foreign assistance programs that align with administration policies—and which advance American interests—will be administered by the State Department, where they will be delivered with more accountability, strategy, and efficiency.”
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