New York Post

Aiding the Enemy

America’s perverse foreign-assistance priorities

- NIKKI HALEY

AMERICA spent $46 billion on foreign aid last year. That’s more than any other country by far. Taxpayers deserve to know where that money is going and what it’s doing. They will be shocked to find that much of it goes to fund anti-American countries and causes. As president, I’ll put a stop to this fiasco.

Here are just a few examples. We’ve given Iraq more than $1 billion over the last few years, even though its government is getting closer to the murderous thugs in Iran who shout “Death to America!” and launch attacks on our troops.

The Biden administra­tion resumed military aid to Pakistan, though it’s home to at least a dozen terrorist organizati­ons and its government is deeply in hock to China.

Team Biden restored half a billion dollars to a corrupt United Nations agency that’s supposed to help the Palestinia­n people but in fact covers for deeply anti-Semitic propaganda against our ally Israel.

We give hundreds of millions of dollars to Zimbabwe, a country with one of the most anti-American voting records in the UN.

If those examples aren’t bad enough, it gets worse — almost comical if it weren’t true.

American taxpayers still give money to Communist China for ridiculous environmen­t programs, despite the obvious threat China poses to Americans. We give money to Belarus, which is Russian dictator Vladimir Putin’s clospublic est ally. We even give money to Communist Cuba — a country our own government has designated as a state sponsor of terrorism.

This is not just Joe Biden. It’s been happening for decades under presidents of both parties. Our foreign-aid policies are stuck in the past. They typically operate on autopilot, with no considerat­ion for the conduct of the countries that receive our aid. The Washington bureaucrac­y and its defenders in Congress inevitably dig in to save these global giveaways. It will take a determined president to root out these taxpayer rip-offs.

I am running for president to restore our nation’s strength, our national pride and our people’s trust. Backing American allies and friends like Israel and Ukraine is smart. Sending our tax dollars to enemies isn’t.

That’s why I will cut every cent in foreign aid for countries that hate us. A strong America doesn’t pay off the bad guys. A proud America doesn’t waste our people’s hard-earned money. And the only leaders who deserve our trust are those who stand up to our enemies and stand beside our friends.

I will be that president, just as I was that ambassador.

As US ambassador to the United Nations, I saw how often antiAmeric­an countries bashed us in then privately begged us for money. And I lost confidence in our leaders, who know what’s happening but keep letting our enemies pig out at the taxpayer trough. Year after year, Congress throws billions of dollars at our enemies and their allies, instead of focusing on America’s allies and our interests.

As ambassador, I strongly supported President Donald Trump’s decision to cut nearly $2 billion of military aid to Pakistan because that country supports terrorists who kill American troops. It was a major victory for our troops, our taxpayers and our vital interests, but it didn’t go nearly far enough. We’ve still given them way too much in other aid. As president, I will block every penny.

At the UN, I put together a book of how much money we give other countries and how often they vote with us. It was eye opening. We are giving huge amounts of cash to countries that vote against us most of the time. That doesn’t make sense. I’ll stop it. America can’t buy our friends. We’ll certainly never buy off our enemies.

No country has a right to the American taxpayer’s money. Our leaders have a responsibi­lity to protect our people and promote our interests. Our politician­s aren’t doing that, all the way up to President Joe Biden. It’s about time we had a president who did.

Nikki Haley is running for president. She was governor of South Carolina and U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations.

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