The Trump administration has unveiled its 2026 budget request — a sweeping proposal that would slash U.S. international affairs spending to its lowest level in 80 years.
The cuts, critics say, are “deep and draconian,” and would result in an 85% drop in the country’s foreign affairs funding if approved by Congress in its current form. That includes a $31 billion budget decrease, and a clawback of $21 billion through rescission requests — which asks Congress to cancel funds it had previously committed to spending.
The first of several expected rescission requests hit Capitol Hill this week, with the vast majority of its $9.4 billion package focused on what the White House called “wasteful” foreign aid spending.
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About the author
Elissa Miolene
Elissa Miolene reports on USAID and the U.S. government at Devex. She previously covered education at The San Jose Mercury News, and has written for outlets like The Wall Street Journal, San Francisco Chronicle, Washingtonian magazine, among others. Before shifting to journalism, Elissa led communications for humanitarian agencies in the United States, East Africa, and South Asia.
