February 3, 2025
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Liz Schrayer, President and CEO of the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition (USGLC), released the following statement on the recent activities around USAID, including Secretary Rubio’s announcement to review and restructure USAID’s activities:
With aggressive and growing threats from our rivals – China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea – it is essential that America utilizes all elements of power to deliver on a “Peace Through Strength” foreign policy to avoid costly wars and outcompete China. As President Reagan showed us, this must include international assistance and USAID.
There is no question that USAID, like any federal agency, would benefit from a strategic review and reform that advances and protects the interests of the American people. Yet, it has been bewildering to witness the last 10 days, including freezing Congressionally appropriated national security programs and moving USAID into the State Department, before completing the review or holding meaningful consultations with Congressional leaders.
For less than 1% of the overall federal budget, America’s international development programs remain one of our nation’s greatest returns on investment for protecting our economic interests and stopping threats before they reach our shores. From working alongside our military to fight ISIS in Syria, to preventing the spread of new outbreaks like Ebola, to saving tens of millions of lives from polio and HIV/AIDS, to competing with China for new markets and influence, we cannot cede ground to our rivals.
Today, China alone has more diplomatic posts than any other country, and their development investments around the world have skyrocketed by 525% over the last 15 years. There is a reason our adversaries are cheering-on what looks to them like we are stepping off the global playing field.
President Reagan understood that a winning Peace Through Strength agenda to deter and defeat our rivals not only required strengthening our military, but also significant and strategic investments in America’s development assistance. He said that “the ultimate importance to the United States of our security and development assistance programs cannot be exaggerated.”
We welcome Secretary Rubio’s commitment to work with Congress on U.S. foreign assistance reform and his comments that “there are a lot of functions of USAID that are going to continue… to be part of American foreign policy.”
As the Administration and Congress discuss the future of USAID, it would be a mistake to diminish the return on investment this unique platform has and can continue to deliver. Nor can we ignore the imperative of international development, global health, and humanitarian response to advance critical U.S. national security priorities. It is essential that America’s international affairs programs are well-resourced and fit for purpose to confront the very real threats America faces on the global stage. We should reform – not retreat.
The U.S. Global Leadership Coalition (www.usglc.org) is a broad-based influential network of 500 businesses and NGOs; national security and foreign policy experts; and business, faith-based, academic, military, and community leaders in all 50 states who support strategic investments to elevate development and diplomacy alongside defense in order to build a better, safer world.