Senator Mark Kelly (D-AZ), alongside Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA) and a group of 36 other senators, raised concerns yesterday about the turmoil within the Trump administration and its impact on key national security agencies. In a striking move against the administration's handling of the U.S. Department of State and its unlawful attempts to dismantle the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), the senators penned a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio to voice their unease, as reported by Senator's Office. The letter, a response to reports of blocked access to USAID's headquarters and the furlough of numerous senior civil servants, underscores the growing restlessness in Washington regarding national security and foreign policy conduct under Trump's leadership.
According to a recent revelation by a letter published on Senator Kelly's website, two top security officials were part of the sweeping furloughs after denying Elon Musk, head of the newly established Department of Government Efficiency, access to classified systems. The letter explicitly states, "Mass personnel furloughs of dubious legality and abrupt, blanket stop-work orders without regard to relevant appropriations laws are causing immediate harm to U.S. national security, placing U.S. citizens at risk, disrupting life-saving work and breaking the U.S. government’s contractual obligations to private sector partners."
The senators further highlighted the importance of foreign aid as a strategic asset to U.S. interests, cautioning that adversaries could exploit the perceived retreat of the U.S. on the global stage. The Trump administration’s moves, which appear to edge towards sidestepping congressional oversight, have prompted a bipartisan outcry. As the Senator's Office stated, "Every Administration has the right to review and adjust ongoing assistance programming. However, attempting to arbitrarily turn off core functions of a critical U.S. national security agency, without Congressional consideration or any metric-based review and absent legal authority to do so, is unprecedented and deeply disturbing."
