3 ms·

> DOGE revealed that USAID was funding political unrest in my home country (where activists recently overthrew the government) Let's just focus on this part fo

> DOGE revealed that USAID was funding political unrest in my home country (where activists recently overthrew the government) Let's just focus on this part for a moment. Could you please share this evidence?

rayiner 2y ago
For context, you should read about how USAID historically has acted to interfere in the politics of other counties: https://foreignpolicy.com/2014/04/03/cuban-twitter-and-other-times-usaid-pretended-to-be-an-intelligence-agency https://foreignpolicy.com/2014/04/03/cuban-twitter-and-other...; https://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2014/04/15/when-is-foreign-aid-meddling/secret-programs-hurt-foreign-aid-efforts https://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2014/04/15/when-is-for...; https://www.jstor.org/stable/4017728 https://www.jstor.org/stable/4017728 As to Bangladesh specifically: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/south-asia/usaid-bypassed-govt-channels-to-fund-29-million-political-project-bangladesh-official/articleshow/118545702.cms https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/south-asia/usaid-b...; https://www.tbsnews.net/bangladesh/29m-usaid-fund-went-bangladesh-firm-only-2-people-trump-1074911 https://www.tbsnews.net/bangladesh/29m-usaid-fund-went-bangl... There is no such thing as funding to “strengthen democracy” or whatever euphemisms USAID uses. It’s election interference directed against whatever administration is currently in power in a foreign country.
- dashundchen 2y ago
  Neither of your articles have any proof or evidence the $20 million funds to Bangladesh are real. It's just what Trump claimed off the cuff. Trump is a known liar. It's why his supporters are always telling other people not take him literally They lied about $50 million for condoms in Gaza, just like he lied about Haitian immigrants eating pets and the dozens of other lies he spews out daily. DOGE has posted a ton of lies about what they saved and cut, including contracts that were already canceled or completed, and including amounts orders of magnitude off.
  - rayiner 2y ago
    https://www.highergov.com/grant/AID388A1700003/ https://www.highergov.com/grant/AID388A1700003/
    - dashundchen 2y ago
      That still doesn't match what Trump, DOGE/Musk or you claimed. That organization has many employees, not 2 like Trump claimed. It operates in countries around the world, not just Bangladesh. It's unlikely all those funds were spent in Bangladesh there like Trump was claiming. Bangladeshi government officials can't confirm Trump's claim. Musk/DOGE lied about what the funds were used for, and lied that they somehow saved the money by cancelling the contract - the funds were already almost entirely granted. Cancelling a contract doesn't mean those funds already spent are returned. The org does monitor elections, but did you know that the US also has international observers during our elections? There's no indication any funds went to election interference. A quick browse of their site shows they conducted a few surveys and held some workshops to encourage women to engage in the the political process - if you consider that election interference, I'm not sure what that says about you. Seems like a great idea to me in a country that frequently ranks near the bottom in studies of global women's rights. This is the problem. Trump and Musk spew out lies and make wild out-of-context claims, they get repeated thought because it fits a partisan view. But it takes effort to debunk lies so they spread faster than they can be responded to.

rayiner 2y ago

For context, you should read about how USAID historically has acted to interfere in the politics of other counties: https://foreignpolicy.com/2014/04/03/cuban-twitter-and-other-times-usaid-pretended-to-be-an-intelligence-agency https://foreignpolicy.com/2014/04/03/cuban-twitter-and-other...; https://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2014/04/15/when-is-foreign-aid-meddling/secret-programs-hurt-foreign-aid-efforts https://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2014/04/15/when-is-for...; https://www.jstor.org/stable/4017728 https://www.jstor.org/stable/4017728 As to Bangladesh specifically: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/south-asia/usaid-bypassed-govt-channels-to-fund-29-million-political-project-bangladesh-official/articleshow/118545702.cms https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/south-asia/usaid-b...; https://www.tbsnews.net/bangladesh/29m-usaid-fund-went-bangladesh-firm-only-2-people-trump-1074911 https://www.tbsnews.net/bangladesh/29m-usaid-fund-went-bangl... There is no such thing as funding to “strengthen democracy” or whatever euphemisms USAID uses. It’s election interference directed against whatever administration is currently in power in a foreign country.

dashundchen 2y ago
Neither of your articles have any proof or evidence the $20 million funds to Bangladesh are real. It's just what Trump claimed off the cuff. Trump is a known liar. It's why his supporters are always telling other people not take him literally They lied about $50 million for condoms in Gaza, just like he lied about Haitian immigrants eating pets and the dozens of other lies he spews out daily. DOGE has posted a ton of lies about what they saved and cut, including contracts that were already canceled or completed, and including amounts orders of magnitude off.
- rayiner 2y ago
  https://www.highergov.com/grant/AID388A1700003/ https://www.highergov.com/grant/AID388A1700003/
  - dashundchen 2y ago
    That still doesn't match what Trump, DOGE/Musk or you claimed. That organization has many employees, not 2 like Trump claimed. It operates in countries around the world, not just Bangladesh. It's unlikely all those funds were spent in Bangladesh there like Trump was claiming. Bangladeshi government officials can't confirm Trump's claim. Musk/DOGE lied about what the funds were used for, and lied that they somehow saved the money by cancelling the contract - the funds were already almost entirely granted. Cancelling a contract doesn't mean those funds already spent are returned. The org does monitor elections, but did you know that the US also has international observers during our elections? There's no indication any funds went to election interference. A quick browse of their site shows they conducted a few surveys and held some workshops to encourage women to engage in the the political process - if you consider that election interference, I'm not sure what that says about you. Seems like a great idea to me in a country that frequently ranks near the bottom in studies of global women's rights. This is the problem. Trump and Musk spew out lies and make wild out-of-context claims, they get repeated thought because it fits a partisan view. But it takes effort to debunk lies so they spread faster than they can be responded to.