[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 28 (Tuesday, February 11, 2025)]
[House]
[Page H619]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       HARMS OF FREEZING FOOD AID

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from 
Oregon (Ms. Bonamici) for 5 minutes.
  Ms. BONAMICI. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong opposition to the 
administration's decision to pause or end--or as the unelected 
billionaire Elon Musk said: ``Feed into the wood chipper''--government 
payments for food aid.
  The thoughtless plan to shut down or pause the work of the U.S. 
Agency for International Development, USAID, is wrong for many reasons. 
It is especially harmful to people around the globe who can starve 
without this food aid, and it is harmful to the U.S. businesses and 
American farmers who sell their agricultural products to the U.S. 
Government.
  In 2020, the U.S. Government bought more than $2 billion in food aid 
from American farmers, but right now, because of this wrong decision by 
the administration, there is about 500,000 tons of food, including 
rice, wheat, and soybeans, at risk of spoiling. Much of it is 
stockpiled in ports across the country, including about 31,000 tons of 
food at the port in Houston, Texas, alone. What a truly senseless waste 
and shameful considering how many people around the globe are food 
insecure.
  My home State of Oregon has a robust agricultural sector. We produce 
wheat, potatoes, and amazing specialty crops. We export more than 80 
percent of our wheat production from Oregon.
  The administration's egregious decision has been really harmful, and 
it is also harmful to national security. This is a national security 
issue.
  The bags of food and the vials of medicine that USAID distributes are 
labeled ``from the American people.'' That improves our standing in the 
world, and it keeps us safer because it is common sense to understand 
that people are much less likely to turn against the United States if 
we are saving their lives and their families' lives in their country.
  This decision also goes beyond USAID because the Trump administration 
has also paused funding for several programs at the Department of 
Agriculture that support farmers, food producers, food banks, and 
people struggling to afford food.
  At a time when food prices remain high, something I know our 
constituents care about, stopping these programs is inhumane and 
shortsighted.
  On behalf of our Oregonian and American farmers, on behalf of those 
in America who want to retain what is left of our global leadership, I 
urge the administration to reverse this heartless and harmful decision.

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