Lawmakers gave an earful to the Trump aide leading foreign assistance and USAID cuts during a closed-door meeting, particularly expressing anger over a stalled program for Afghan allies of US troops.
The meeting was tense and failed to provide a clear resolution to the reduction in foreign aid, which has triggered legal disputes and raised concerns about the balance of powers.
‘All these protesters were banging on the door. It was so loud you could barely hear him,’ Texas Republican Rep. Michael McCaul told DailyMail.com.
The dispute over foreign aid coincided with Trump’s proposal for a new travel ban that may soon prohibit visitors from Pakistan and Afghanistan, reigniting tensions akin to the controversial ‘Muslim ban’ of 2017.
The Trump official taking the heat was Peter Marocco, the State Department’s head of foreign assistance who has been directing the USAID cuts as deputy administrator-designate at the U.S. Agency for International Development.
McCaul said he pressed Marocco on the halt in refugee flights and other assistance to Afghans who served the U.S. military as translators and in other roles, and who can get special immigrant visas to come to the U.S.
It comes with up to 40,000 of them stuck in third countries like Qatar.
‘I just said, like, you have always waivers for humanitarian assistance … medications that are sitting in Houston in my state, all those foods rotting, and they get 500,000 metric tons on the ships at sea. And the waivers aren’t being implemented,’ said McCaul.
Peter Marocco, deputy administrator-designate at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), took heat from lawmakers in a close-door meeting on Capitol Hill Wednesday
‘And he said, Well, we found a lot of fraud, waste and abuse, and that’s slowing it down, this and that,’ he said.
The situation is grave for those who might get sent back to Afghanistan, where the Taliban still rules. (The feds on Wednesday released in image ISIS-K terrorist alleged to have help carry out the Abby Gate bombing during the US troop withdrawal).
‘They put a pause on all refugees and they paused foreign assistance to allow them, under this CARE office, to be flown. And so they’re just stuck there, but it’s a betrayal, because they fought alongside our [troops] in combat.’
‘And they’re like, well, you know, some say they’re terrorists. They fought against the terrorists – at great risk. And many of them died, and they will die if they get sent back to Afghanistan,’ he added.
Marocco is a controversial figure. A former Marine, he filed an affidavit amid a lawsuit of his efforts to slash foreign assistance saying he had ‘grave concern about whether U.S.A.I.D. was faithfully following the president’s and secretary’s directives.’
A member of the Sedition Hunters effort posted an image from video footage purporting to show Marocco and his wife inside and outside the Capitol on January 6. Marocco blasted ‘petty smear tactics and desperate personal attacks in an interview with D magazine, after spearheading efforts to change the Texas constitution. He was never charged, and President Trump pardoned January 6 defendants.
Protesters outside the bipartisan meeting Wednesday held up signs that said ‘Marocco lies, people with AIDS die.’ Thousands of USAID employees have been placed on leave, with DOGE overseeing cuts in government contracts.
‘He didn’t say anything,’ fumed Rep. Gregory Meeks of New York, the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee.
Afghans who assisted US troop ‘will die if they get sent back to Afghanistan,’ said Rep. Michael McCaul (D-Texas)
Former House Foreign Affairs Chairman Rep. Michael McCaul criticized ‘foods rotting’ after sudden foreign assistance cutoffs
Congressional Republicans have offered only limited criticism of DOGE cuts, which Democrats say violate enacted appropriations
‘I mean, there was no real transparency. Didn’t have a lot of answers.’ He said there should have been a public hearing.
‘We only had 30 seconds to ask a question. He’s only there for an hour. But when we asked to show the documents, because he said there were some mistakes. Well, shows what the mistakes were made? how big was it? What’s the money? But he didn’t have any answers at all?’
He said Republicans are being ‘too gentle’ with Marocco.
‘He couldn’t answer some of their questions, two or three of the members,’ he said, but said Republican House members didn’t criticize Marocco when he didn’t.
He said it was his understanding that Marocco is now the sole employee at the independent Inter-American Foundation, which funds economic development in Latin America and the Caribbean, after a purge of the 37-member staff.
‘You get rid of all of the inspector generals, you get rid of all the individuals that should have oversight, like Congress,’ said Meeks. ‘He’s bypassed Congress, you know, money that was directed clear congressional intent – no consultation with us at all in that regard. So it is basically what he’s doing is unconstitutional.’
DailyMail.com has reached out to the State Department for comment on the meeting.
