As Trump guts foreign aid, his secretary of state warns a judge that blocking migrant deportations to South Sudan will harm “humanitarian efforts”
A judge ruled this week that Donald Trump’s administration violated his order barring officials from deporting people to third countries by attempting to send a group of Asian immigrants to South Sudan – and directed them to maintain custody of the immigrants at a U.S. military base.
On Friday night, Trump’s Justice Department and Secretary of State Marco Rubio unveiled a wild new argument as they demanded Judge Brian Murphy either reconsider or pause his orders so they can appeal them. The Trump officials argued that blocking the president’s attempt to deport immigrants to war-torn South Sudan will harm efforts to distribute humanitarian aid in the region.
That’s got to be one of their stupidest, wackiest rationales yet.
Especially considering that:
It’s a rich argument, considering that the Trump administration has gutted the government’s humanitarian efforts, starting with the elimination of the U.S. Agency for International Development. The scraps of USAID, America’s foreign aid bureau, have been folded into Rubio’s State Department.
Last month, the nonprofit aid group Save the Children reported that it had closed seven free health facilities in South Sudan as a result of foreign aid cuts. The organization told The Washington Post that the Trump administration had terminated about $13 million in funding for South Sudan. The money had come from the State Department and U.S.-funded United Nations programs.
According to Save the Children, five children with cholera and three adults died last month as they attempted to travel three hours – in 104-degree weather and with “no access to clean water, shade, or medicines” – to the organization’s nearest health facility after the aid cuts forced closures.
