USAID may be the biggest scandal in American History.

[GVF]

So most of those who think we give away too much don't know the subject matter at all. Maybe we do, and maybe it's for the wrong purposes. But there's some good being done which works to our benefit too.

And when audits and changes are made, those programs worthy of sending US Taxpayer money abroad can resume with meaningful accountability audits and seriously documented money trails. However, if it's not Ag crop related or healthcare related, a USAID program should not exist. Aid should not be a lifetime handout. Teaching to subsist through crop development to feed your people is a worthy longstanding USAID venture which seems to have faded a bit. If it were true to it's title "development"...

Our meddling handouts to topple governments has done nothing to further the mankind of these countries. We just pay different regimes more money to keep their people beat down and genocided so we can exploit and rape their natural resources. We have a history of breeding corruption like rabbits. That's where your tax dollars from your paycheck goes. Trump is merely exposing the scam that all these raging politicicians have been raping their own citizens and neighbors for decades for little more than pure greed.

A history lesson that has never been learned is that no civilization/government in the history of the world has ever, ever survived the internal rot of greed, corruption, and godlessness. That is what brought down mighty Rome, and everyone before or after. It will happen here. And we are well on the way, unless this purge and rebirth contiunes.

 

[GVF]

I believe this is true. But I don't trust our government. I believe the good they do is the cover for the larger bad they do around the world...... And have for years. It's time the government is held accountable to the people..... Not acting in spite of.

And if Trump is wrong and this isn't happening great .....I hope he looks like a fool. If he's right..... Then we've lost nothing and are gaining a true, representative and accountable government.

Good point...But when you initiate a purge of corruption and fraud, and it's this loud...chances are heavily in favor of him being right.

The only thing Trump needs to do to have the support of the greater public is to publish line item summaries of every "program" in these spending bills that their hard earned money is paying for abroad (and at home) without their knowledge nor the opportunity to voice their voter concern to their rep about how they are voting to spend your paycheck.

If people really knew what their Reps voted for in DC, and how they wasted your paychecks when you are struggling, you'd witness an historically epic rollover in the next few election cycles. And let's not forget, not one single elected official in DC has ever left DC with less than millionaire status on $175K salaries. Kickbacks, "Donations", and insider trading is rampant and uncontrolled.

 

[GroverCleveland]

With our system, shutting it down and restarting it wouldn't be more effective in solving its problems than reforming it. Just impose transparency and other tighter controls.

How do you know it won’t be more effective? This approach has not been tried at least since WW2.

Politicians have been paying lip service to imposing “transparency and other tighter controls” since FDR. American citizens have been saddled with the governmental equivalent of Audrey II from Little Shop of Horrors.

 

[GroverCleveland]

Who had "rebuilding and owning gaza" with taxpayer money and troops on their bingo card?

lol. I had the exact same thought this morning.

 

[KB5252]

There is no reward if we did this.

There could be..... But it's highly doubtful. It's just shirt of impossible. Improbable and a gamble with much more to lose than win.

 

[ButchPlz]

If you really want to get constitutional about it, The 14th was originally conceived to provied citizenship to American soil born children of slaves brought here against their will. It was also a stop gap to bring the country back together after the Civil War and to project provisions for confederate states to blend back in by meeting certain obligations. It also established rights to vote, etc. Pretty sure it wasn't intended as an abused work around to run accross the border illegally to shoot out a US born baby. In context, the 14th was not written as an immigration loophole for all eternity.

Passed by the Senate on June 8, 1866, and ratified two years later, on July 9, 1868, the Fourteenth Amendment granted citizenship to all persons "born or naturalized in the United States," including formerly enslaved people, and provided all citizens with “equal protection under the laws,” extending the provisions of the Bill of Rights to the states. The amendment authorized the government to punish states that abridged citizens’ right to vote by proportionally reducing their representation in Congress. It banned those who “engaged in insurrection” against the United States from holding any civil, military, or elected office without the approval of two-thirds of the House and Senate. The amendment prohibited former Confederate states from repaying war debts and compensating former slave owners for the emancipation of their enslaved people. Finally, it granted Congress the power to enforce this amendment, a provision that led to the passage of other landmark legislation in the 20th century, including the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Congress required former Confederate states to ratify the Fourteenth Amendment as a condition of regaining federal representation.

You need to bold the last line there.

 

[hog88]

There could be..... But it's highly doubtful. It's just shirt of impossible. Improbable and a gamble with much more to lose than win.

I see no benefit in US troops getting involved with Gaza. Hamas and the Gazuntites don't want peace and most would give their left nut at the chance to kill a US soldier. Let Israel bulldoze the place and turn it into a beach side resort.

 

[KB5252]

Good point...But when you initiate a purge of corruption and fraud, and it's this loud...chances are heavily in favor of him being right.

The only thing Trump needs to do to have the support of the greater public is to publish line item summaries of every "program" in these spending bills that their hard earned money is paying for abroad (and at home) without their knowledge nor the opportunity to voice their voter concern to their rep about how they are voting to spend your paycheck.

If people really knew what their Reps voted for in DC, and how they wasted your paychecks when you are struggling, you'd witness an historically epic rollover in the next few election cycles. And let's not forget, not one single elected official in DC has ever left DC with less than millionaire status on $175K salaries. Kickbacks, "Donations", and insider trading is rampant and uncontrolled.

You do realize most of the money is untraceable. It's been laundered through multiple layers. For instance the millions of dollars spent through the BBC for journalism development........ That didn't require millions, especially in 3rd world countries. A fraction of that went where it was supposed to go..... The rest into the ether....... Just as likely funded oppositional terrorism or arming/training armies with light arms.

 

[hjeagle1vol]

Interesting

 

[ButchPlz]

Interesting

The problem is USAID is and always has been the playground of whatever whims some exec (within the agency and its contractors) has. So what we'll find is USAID is dumping money into every side of every conflict, dispute, every movement, every "initiative", and very little of it accomplishes any mission other than spending.

At every USAID event I ever attended (many), there was never any discussion on returns on investment/impacts broadly. They'd parade about a single well they built in Africa, for instance, but not about how much that contract cost. But what they did highlight- over and over- was the billions they put into "helping" the rest of the world. For f***'s sake, the monitoring and evaluation contracts that they put in place to "audit" the success of their programs were largely funneled to offshoots of their top 3-4 vendors (DAI & Chemonics are the worst offenders) or former/retired agency employees.

 

[GVF]

You need to bold the last line there.

Good point. My take on the 14th, reading it objectively, is that it was in no way, shape or form, an ammendment to legalize or allow birthright citizenship as we use the 14th today. It was purely an ammendment to resolve a post-war calamity and prevent southern states from perpetually having a runaround for slavery and civil rights. It had era-senstive contextuality. If it was intended to allow perpetual illegal entry and child rearing as a way to circumvent immigration laws that are on the books, it would have said so. And persuant to that topic, ratified immigration laws of the United States post 14th would negate the 14th as a means to illegally gain citzenship.

 

[hog88]

The problem is USAID is and always has been the playground of whatever whims some exec (within the agency and its contractors) has. So what we'll find is USAID is dumping money into every side of every conflict, dispute, every movement, every "initiative", and very little of it accomplishes any mission other than spending.

At every USAID event I ever attended (many), there was never any discussion on returns on investment/impacts broadly. They'd parade about a single well they built in Africa, for instance, but not about how much that contract cost. But what they did highlight- over and over- was the billions they put into "helping" the rest of the world. For f***'s sake, the monitoring and evaluation contracts that they put in place to "audit" the success of their programs were largely funneled to offshoots of their top 3-4 vendors (DAI & Chemonics are the worst offenders) or former/retired agency employees.

I think it's safe to say USAID is nothing but a money laundering organization.

 

[ButchPlz]

I think it's safe to say USAID is nothing but a money laundering organization.

Easily. I said before it's the most incestuous organization I've ever seen. And that's because buddies and politicians are all paying each other with American taxpayer money.

 

[TheDeeble]

I think it's safe to say USAID is nothing but a money laundering organization.

It probably started with good intentions in it's infancy 60 years ago of helping in natural disasters, famine, refugees of war, ect and over time politicians and bureaucrats realized they can fund all their pet projects with no oversight. And probably some laundering as well.

 

[VOLS INC.]

I think it's safe to say USAID is nothing but a money laundering organization.

And a really good one!!

Turns out the government is good at a few things.

 

[Big Orange#1]

 

[utvolpj]

Not sure why there's much surprise. W did prioritze Africa more than any other potus. It was just overshadowed by his killing the USA in the ME

 

[utvolpj]

It probably started with good intentions in it's infancy 60 years ago of helping in natural disasters, famine, refugees of war, ect and over time politicians and bureaucrats realized they can fund all their pet projects with no oversight. And probably some laundering as well.

It's cia. They use their lofty website goals to gain access and "spread democracy"

 

[VOLS INC.]

It's cia. They use their lofty website goals to gain access and "spread democracy"

I mentioned something similar earlier in the thread. Multiple ways to achieve goals. You can fire a shot or poison a culture.

 

[EasternVol]

Like I said...in context. In the context of the time it was written, it was to bring all people in america together with rights and freedoms. And to give citizenship to descendents of peoples here against their will. Even in the context of it's purpose, the 14th at that time did not grant unilateral citizenship to everybody and their dog and goat. It did not say, OK you come to our country illegally and pump out a baby and get free birthrights and all kinds of stuff in your goody bags. With any level of reading comprehension, the 14th is not for illegal immigration abuse.

I think you're mixing reading comprehension with assumed knowledge of intent because it clearly says anyone born here and not a child of parents with diplomatic immunity gets citizenship. We need to clarify the issue by means of another Amendment.

 

[EasternVol]

And when audits and changes are made, those programs worthy of sending US Taxpayer money abroad can resume with meaningful accountability audits and seriously documented money trails. However, if it's not Ag crop related or healthcare related, a USAID program should not exist. Aid should not be a lifetime handout. Teaching to subsist through crop development to feed your people is a worthy longstanding USAID venture which seems to have faded a bit. If it were true to it's title "development"...

Our meddling handouts to topple governments has done nothing to further the mankind of these countries. We just pay different regimes more money to keep their people beat down and genocided so we can exploit and rape their natural resources. We have a history of breeding corruption like rabbits. That's where your tax dollars from your paycheck goes. Trump is merely exposing the scam that all these raging politicicians have been raping their own citizens and neighbors for decades for little more than pure greed.

A history lesson that has never been learned is that no civilization/government in the history of the world has ever, ever survived the internal rot of greed, corruption, and godlessness. That is what brought down mighty Rome, and everyone before or after. It will happen here. And we are well on the way, unless this purge and rebirth contiunes.

Your first sentence is pretty much what I've said earlier in this thread so we agree there.
There's no reason to limit the scope of aid to agriculture and healthcare though. Education and vocational training aid e.g. could be beneficial.
I wouldn't blame only USAID for our meddling handouts aimed at toppling governments and the resulting installation of puppets who oppress their people. After all USAID, if it's involved in that, is a tool of the Administration. Blame lies with the White House and Capitol Hill.

 

[hog88]

Your first sentence is pretty much what I've said earlier in this thread so we agree there.
There's no reason to limit the scope of aid to agriculture and healthcare though. Education and vocational training aid e.g. could be beneficial.
I wouldn't blame only USAID for our meddling handouts aimed at toppling governments and the resulting installation of puppets who oppress their people. After all USAID, if it's involved in that, is a tool of the Administration. Blame lies with the White House and Capitol Hill.

I wouldn't say that they are exclusively a tool of the administration. There's probably a ton of things they fund with our dollars that neither congress or the sitting administration are aware of.

 

[EasternVol]

How do you know it won’t be more effective? This approach has not been tried at least since WW2.

Politicians have been paying lip service to imposing “transparency and other tighter controls” since FDR. American citizens have been saddled with the governmental equivalent of Audrey II from Little Shop of Horrors.

Because we'd lose its benefit while it's shut down, and there's no indication that shutting it down and rebuilding it would be more effective than reforming it.

 

[hog88]

Because we'd lose its benefit while it's shut down, and there's no indication that shutting it down and rebuilding it would be more effective than reforming it.

Sometimes the tree is just too rotted to be saved.

 

[LSU-SIU]

I think you're mixing reading comprehension with assumed knowledge of intent because it clearly says anyone born here and not a child of parents with diplomatic immunity gets citizenship. We need to clarify the issue by means of another Amendment.

Actually, the more I look at it the more I believe its the opposite. Meaning, if the parents do not have citizenship nor have accepted the jurisdiction of the U.S. than the child would be excluded. (it seems increasingly relevant as to the status of the parents, obviously not all children born in the U.S. are auto-citzens, furthermore the whole dual citizenship should never really exist)



UNITED STATES v. WONG KIM ARK.

UNITED STATES v. WONG KIM ARK​

Actually touches on these points as well which comes down to accepting the jurisdiction of the host country by the parents, if one is not one that accept jurisdiction than it doesn't seem as clear as one would suspect. Most of this would not be an issue if it were merely where someone was born, clearly people can be excluded... heck, it can be done today statutorily if a person wants to renounce.

'That said Wong Kim Ark has not, either by himself or his parents acting for him, ever renounced his allegiance to the United States, and that he has never done or committed any act or thing to exclude him therefrom.'