The President's Daily Brief
February 10th, 2025: The Very Worst Of USAID Spending & Hamas Releases Emaciated Hostages
Mon, 10 Feb 2025
In this episode of The President's Daily Brief: The Trump administration is moving to overhaul USAID—an agency that doles out billions in foreign aid with little oversight. Is it finally time to rein it in? The world reacts as Hamas releases three emaciated hostages over the weekend as part of the ongoing ceasefire deal. As both sides exchange hostages and prisoners, Israel follows through on another key part of the agreement—pulling troops from a critical corridor in Gaza. And in the Back of the Brief: After a brief lull, North Korean troops may have returned to the front lines, while Russia scrambles to counter a renewed Ukrainian offensive in Kursk. To listen to the show ad-free, become a premium member of The President’s Daily Brief by visiting PDBPremium.com. Please remember to subscribe if you enjoyed this episode of The President's Daily Brief. YouTube: youtube.com/@presidentsdailybrief Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Chapter 1: What is USAID and why is it being overhauled?
It's Monday, 10 February. Welcome to the President's Daily Brief. I'm Mike Baker. Your eyes and ears on the world stage. Coming to you today from somewhere in Europe. All right, let's get briefed. We'll start things off today with the Trump administration's push to overhaul USAID. That's an agency that hands out billions in foreign aid, frankly, with little oversight.
So you ask yourself, is there a chance that a thorough, efficient audit of USAID spending just might perhaps identify government waste and abuse? There's a possibility. Later in the show, the world reacted with shock as Hamas released three emaciated hostages over the weekend as part of the ongoing ceasefire deal.
Plus, as both sides exchange hostages and prisoners, Israel follows through on another key part of the agreement and pulling out troops from a critical corridor in Gaza. and in the back of the brief. After a short respite, it appears that North Korean troops may have returned to the front lines as Russian military forces attempt to blunt the renewed Ukrainian offensive in Kursk.
Well, that makes sense. I mean, if the Ukrainian military engages in an offensive, Putin's going to need some cannon fodder. And I think he's already discovered that the North Korean troops make for fine fodder. But first, today's PDB Spotlight. Today we're beginning with a closer look at USAID, the U.S.
Agency for International Development, and the Trump administration's ongoing efforts to reform or, in some cases, completely overhaul the agency. If you want to understand what the U.S. government prioritizes, the best way to do it is to follow the money. And if you follow the money at USAID, you might find yourself asking some uncomfortable questions.
USAID, in a sense, is the face of American foreign policy. While the State Department handles diplomacy, USAID is on the ground, engaging directly with civilian populations around the world. The agency, frankly, is massive. In fiscal year 2023 alone, they handed out nearly $43.8 billion in funding worldwide, more than two-thirds of the entire State Department's $60 billion budget. And yet...
Despite being largely bankrolled by the State Department, USAID operates as an independent agency, separate from the control of the State Department. It was originally established by the JFK administration in 1961, specifically as an independent autonomous organization. That independence is a double-edged sword. On the one hand, it gives the agency the flexibility to respond quickly to crises.
But on the other, it makes oversight a bit of a nightmare. With missions in over 100 countries, many of them unstable, keeping track of where the money actually goes is like herding cats. Add in the fact that USAID funding flows not just through the State Department, but also through the defense and treasury departments, and you have a recipe for inefficiency, waste, and fraud.
Not to mention the lack of consistent audit functions to ensure money is being spent effectively and in line with U.S. interests. And here's the reality. USAID doesn't even carry out most of its work directly. Instead, it offloads the heavy lifting to third-party organizations, contractors, NGOs, and international groups.
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Chapter 2: How are USAID funds being mismanaged?
But even the most well-intentioned programs can be undermined by waste and mismanagement. And then there are other projects that make you wonder if anyone in Washington has their priorities straight. I had the incredible staff at the President's Daily Brief do a little digging, and we found some fairly egregious examples of where USAID money has gone in the recent past.
Let's start with one of the agency's more infamous blunders, the Tarakil Power Plant in Afghanistan. USAID spent $335 million, that's a lot of jack, building this diesel-fueled power plant just outside Kabul. But there was one slight problem. Diesel fuel is absurdly expensive to import into Afghanistan. As a result, the plant ran at just 2% of its capacity.
That's hundreds of millions of dollars of taxpayer money down the drain. A small amount of due diligence and oversight could have identified the weaknesses in this plan and saved all those taxpayer dollars. But in recent years, USAID's priorities have taken a noticeable shift.
It seems less focused on delivering aid and more concerned with advancing a social agenda, one that has little to do with American national interests. Take, for example, a pro-LGBTQ group in Serbia called Grupa Izadji, which translates to Group Comes Out. USAID funneled $1.5 million to this group to, quote, advance diversity, equity, and inclusion in Serbia's workplaces and business communities.
According to the grant documents, this initiative aimed to, quote, increase employment potential for LGBTQI+, how many letters do we have, persons, expand opportunities for LGBTQI+, entrepreneurs, and reduce workplace discrimination, end quote. Now, whatever your personal views on that mission, one has to ask, why are American taxpayers funding it? It gets worse.
USAID spent $2 million in Guatemala funding Asociación Lambda, an LGBTQI+, I'm getting better at this, activist organization to promote, quote, gender-affirming health care. In plain English, well, U.S. taxpayer dollars were being used to pay for sex change procedures in Guatemala. Then there's the $3.3 million that USAID dumped into the Caribbean to promote LGBTQ acceptance.
Or the $425,600 that was spent helping Indonesian coffee companies become, quote, more climate and gender friendly. That's what I look for in my coffee. Still not convinced that USAID might be in need of some grown-up supervision? Well, how about the $70,000 grant for a DEI-themed musical in Ireland? Just what they were looking for. Yes, you heard that right. A musical. Frankly, okay, fine.
Who doesn't love a musical? The money was earmarked to, quote, deliver a live musical event to promote the U.S. and Irish shared values of diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility, end quote. Or how about the $20,600 that USAID spent in Ecuador to fund three workshops, 12 drag theater performances, and a short documentary? All in the name, of course, of diversity and inclusion.
And in Peru, USAID spent $32,000 creating a comic book featuring an LGBTQI plus hero. Yeah, because obviously that's a pressing foreign policy aid priority. Now, let me ask you this.
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Chapter 3: What controversial projects has USAID funded?
Look, of course, there's nothing wrong with foreign aid, right? Some of it is critically important. Just like, of course, there's nothing wrong with accountability. Americans have every right to demand that their money be spent wisely and in their interests.
If the best justification for a $70,000 DEI musical in Ireland is that it allows some bureaucrats to wallow in the glow of self-righteousness, well, then maybe it's time to rethink what we're actually trying to accomplish with USAID in the first place. All right. If you want to dive deeper into the lack of transparency and oversight at USAID, check out this past weekend's Situation Report.
I spoke with former Ohio Congressman Jim Renacci about exactly that. You can also watch it, of course, on our YouTube channel, and you can find our YouTube channel at President's Daily Brief. All right, coming up after the break, widespread shock over the horrific conditions of the three hostages freed from Gaza. And Israel takes another key step in the ongoing ceasefire deal. I'll be right back.
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The fragile ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas stretched into its fifth round of exchanges, as three Israeli hostages and more than 180 Palestinian prisoners were swapped on Saturday. However, the emaciated state of the now-freed Israelis ignited public fury, raising new concerns over Hamas's treatment of abductees.
Okay, did anyone imagine that the hostages were being treated humanely by Hamas? The three men, Ohad Ben-Ami, Eli Shirabi, and Or Levi, were among those taken hostage during Hamas's brutal 7 October 2023 terror attacks. The three men spent 491 days in captivity before being handed over to the Red Cross in central Gaza in what appeared to be an orderly transfer.
That's a stark departure from the chaos of previous hostage releases. But the first images of the three men, gaunt, malnourished and visibly weak, shocked Israelis. Their photos were immediately projected onto large screens in Tel Aviv's Hostage Square, where their families and supporters stood in stunned silence. The hostages in Missing Families Forum called the images, quote, disturbing.
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Chapter 4: What are the implications of Hamas releasing hostages?
Hamas held the Israeli withdrawal Sunday as a victory, declaring it proof of, quote, the will of our people. While Israel has not officially acknowledged the pullout, CNN reported no visible Israeli military presence at the crossing on Sunday.
The corridor, a near four-mile strip of land stretching from the Israel-Gaza border to the Mediterranean, was established as a strategic chokepoint during Israel's 15-month military campaign against Hamas. Its closure effectively severed northern Gaza, restricting both civilian movement and humanitarian aid.
Despite the retreat, a checkpoint does remain in place, manned by the supervision of Egyptian and Qatari mediators, who have been key components, of course, to managing talks between Israel and Hamas during the ceasefire process.
In the first 72 hours after the corridor reopened, Gaza's government media office estimates roughly 500,000 displaced Palestinians moved north on foot, others in makeshift vehicles, or on donkeys traversing a battered landscape marked by months of heavy fighting.
But despite withdrawing from Netzerim, Israel still controls Gaza's borders with Egypt and Israel maintaining broader restrictions in place. Meanwhile, the ceasefire's fragile footing was tested over the weekend by fresh violence near an Israeli kibbutz close to the Gaza border.
Palestinian authorities reported that Israeli troops opened fire near the area, killing three Palestinians and injuring several others. The IDF stated that its forces had fired warning shots at, quote, suspects approaching the border fence, confirming that, quote, several hits were identified, but without directly acknowledging any civilian casualties.
In a blunt warning following the incident, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz issued a statement declaring, quote, their blood is on their own head. Zero tolerance for anyone who threatens IDF forces or the fence area and communities. Meanwhile, diplomatic efforts to shore up the ceasefire are ongoing.
On Saturday, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu dispatched a delegation to Doha, Qatar, to discuss further terms of the agreement. A senior Israeli official described the team as, quote, mid-level, emphasizing the discussions would focus on the, quote, technical details rather than broader political discussions.
But even as those talks unfold, Israeli military operations have ramped up in the northern West Bank, The United Nations reports IDF raids in the cities of Jenin, Tulkarm, and Tubas, and they're severely restricting access to essential services while inflicting widespread destruction.
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Chapter 5: How have the released hostages been treated?
In today's Back of the Brief, I want to provide you with an update on the frontlines of the Russia-Ukraine war. Ukrainian President Zelensky announced Friday that Russia redeployed North Korean soldiers to fight alongside its troops in the western Kursk region.
As we reported last week on the PDB, North Korean frontline forces had all but disappeared from the battlefield over the past three weeks, sparking speculation that Pyongyang quietly withdrew its soldiers following heavy casualties.
Now it appears they've resurfaced, suggesting either a strategic redeployment or that Moscow has convinced its reclusive ally to double down on its military commitment. Zelensky, in a post on X, stated, quote, I received a report from the commander-in-chief on the situation in the Donetsk and Kursk regions. In the areas of the Kursk operation, new assaults have taken place.
Russia has once again deployed North Korean soldiers alongside its own troops. According to South Korea's National Intelligence Service estimates Pyongyang sent approximately 11,000 troops to reinforce Russia's war effort in Ukraine The agency believes around 300 of these soldiers have been killed with another 2,700 wounded
figures that, if accurate, underscore just how poorly trained and equipped these troops are for modern warfare. That assessment tracks with first-hand accounts from the battlefield.
In January, a Ukrainian commander with the 6th Special Operations Forces Regiment observed that North Korean troops appeared wholly unprepared for 21st century combat, stating, "...they are prepared for the realities of war in 1980 at best." Military analysts warn that if the casualty rate continues at its current pace, Pyongyang's contribution to the war may become unsustainable.
Yet despite mounting evidence, including Ukraine's reported capture of two North Korean soldiers inside Russian territory in Kursk, well, yeah, that would be evidence, both Moscow and Pyongyang continue to deny any troop deployments or military collaboration. We don't know anything about it. Sorry. Move on.
As we've tracked here on the PDB, North Korean-made ballistic missiles have been fired at Kiev via Moscow, with defense analysts suspecting that Pyongyang has enhanced their navigation systems, possibly incorporating Russian guidance technology. For now, the Kremlin and Pyongyang are sticking to their denials.
But as intelligence assessments pile up and more North Korean soldiers are killed or captured, well, it's becoming increasingly difficult to dismiss the obvious. North Korea is, of course, playing a direct role in Russia's war effort. And that, my friends, is the President's Daily Brief for Monday, 10 February.
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Chapter 6: What are the public reactions to the hostages' conditions?
And of course, to listen to the show ad-free, well, become a premium member of the President's Daily Brief simply by visiting pdbpremium.com. I'm Mike Baker, and I'll be back later today with the PDB Afternoon Bulletin. Until then, stay informed, stay safe, stay cool.