On June 3, the Trump administration submitted a $9.4 billion rescission package to Congress, seeking to claw back congressionally approved foreign aid funds for fiscal year (FY) 2025 and public broadcasting funding for FY 2026 and FY 2027 advance appropriations. Of that total, approximately $8.3 billion targets core foreign assistance accounts—including global health programs, development aid, humanitarian response, and contributions to multilateral institutions. As part of the rescission package, the Trump administration is seeking congressional approval in its efforts to dismantle USAID, rescinding $125 million of the $1.7 billion in appropriated funds in FY 2025, with some multiyear funds, affecting salaries and benefits for USAID staff.
On June 12, the U.S. House of Representatives narrowly passed the rescission package in a 214–212 vote. The Senate is expected to consider the measure next. Congress has until July 18 to send the package to President Trump; if it fails to do so, the president must spend the funds as appropriated.
From global HIV treatment and emergency food aid to support for democratic institutions, the programs Trump is seeking to cut are vital to U.S. interests. The cuts also risk impacts at home, slashing funding for universities, nonprofits, and contractors across dozens of states—undermining jobs, research, and America’s role in the world. The Trump administration claims these cuts are eliminating “wasteful and unnecessary” spending, but it is slashing these cost-effective programs while pursuing spending in areas that bring little or no benefit to the American people, such as extended deployments of troops at the U.S. border or remodeling Trump’s newly gifted Boeing 747 jet from Qatar.
This fact sheet outlines what is being cut and what the Trump administration is prioritizing instead.
Foreign aid programs facing rescission and what is at stake
The roughly $8.3 billion in targeted accounts support U.S. responses to conflict, hunger, disease, and democratic decline—all core tools for advancing American interests and global stability. The table below outlines the affected accounts and the impact should the Senate pass the rescission package in its current form.
Where the Trump administration is choosing to spend
The list below highlights a sample of political pet projects and unnecessary spending proposals advanced by the Trump administration since returning to office. The estimated total cost of just the projects mentioned herein is $220.8 billion, depending on final costs for projects such as the June 14 U.S. Army parade in Washington, D.C., on President Trump’s birthday and Golden Dome, a proposed missile defense system for the United States. Many expenses remain uncertain due to long-term projections, partial disclosures, and disputed estimates.
Conclusion
The Trump administration says it wants to cut waste, but it is proposing to gut programs that save lives, contain disease, reduce migration, and prevent crises from spiraling into conflicts that threaten U.S. interests—at home and abroad. These cuts target proven efforts that stop outbreaks before they reach American shores, stabilize fragile regions, and build economic resilience, all while redirecting funds to political vanity projects that do nothing for the American people.
As the Senate considers Trump’s proposed cuts to foreign assistance, it should reject these rescissions and uphold funding that delivers real returns for global stability and Americans’ well-being.