WASHINGTON – Liz Schrayer, President and CEO of the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition (USGLC), released the following statement on Congressional approval of $7.9 billion in rescissions of previously appropriated resources for U.S. international assistance.

The threats from Iran, Russia, North Korea, and China have not diminished in the four months since this same Congress approved the very resources that were just cancelled.

In a dangerous world where our rivals are playing to win, it’s self-defeating for America to unilaterally take critical tools off the playing field – including essential global health, food security, international development, humanitarian resources, and programs with allies and partners that leverage greater burden sharing, that deliver for the American people.

While I was pleased to see some important changes from the Administration’s proposal – including eliminating the rescission for PEPFAR and protecting several other critical programs from spending cancellations – the final package still makes devastating cuts to resources that could have been used to advance the Administration’s priorities and American interests here at home.

We commend the leadership of those Republicans and Democrats who stood strong against these significant cuts to U.S. international assistance – particularly Senate Appropriations Chair Susan Collins and Senator Lisa Murkowski.

The reality is – this rescission is not happening in a vacuum. It comes on the heels of executive actions that have dramatically eroded America’s civilian tools of global engagement – from terminating life-saving programs, to laying off thousands of U.S. diplomatic and development experts, to a budget request that proposes to cut spending to its lowest level since before the end of World War II.

There is no question we need to ensure our diplomatic and international assistance programs are accountable, transparent, and deliver for the American people. This is why the USGLC has released our Blueprint for America to Win in the World, offering practical ideas to reform these programs.

The Administration has reshaped programs and approaches that were clearly misaligned with its foreign policy vision, but now Congress must reassert its constitutional authority over spending as it turns to the FY26 appropriations process. We look forward to continuing to work with leaders on both sides of the aisle who are speaking out on the value of diplomacy and international assistance to ensure America wins in the world.

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