A proposed budget from the Trump administration revealed they plan to cut the budget of the State Department and USAID by nearly half, according to a report from the Washington Post.
The outlet’s review of an internal memo found an early proposal for the next fiscal year would leave a total budget of $28.4 billion for all activities carried out by the State Department and USAID.
“That represents a decline of $27 billion, or 48 percent, from funding levels approved by Congress for 2025.”
The memo noted that “humanitarian assistance would face cuts of 54 percent, while global health funding would fall by 55 percent.”
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While it is questionable if these cuts would pass, Senator Chris Can Hollen (D-MD) told WaPo, “This is an unserious budget.”
The top Democrat on the State Department and USAID subcommittee of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations added, “I predict it will hit a wall of bipartisan opposition.”
In a statement, the American Foreign Service Association asked Congress to reject any budget that proposed cuts, calling the proposal “reckless and dangerous." They went on to suggest if left unchanged the budget “would empower adversaries like China and Russia who are eager to fill the void left by a retreating United States.”
Quoting the memo, the outlet also noted, “The document also proposes a new program called the America First Opportunities Fund, or A1OF, that would have $2.1 billion for 'enduring and emerging Trump administration priorities.' Some of these funds could be used to support the United Nations or peacekeeping operations.”
The final budget proposal is expected to be presented to Congress in late April.
The State Department did not respond to the Washington Post’s request for comment. It is not known if they will close any overseas facilities.
According to the memo, Rubio has until Tuesday to respond to the proposal.