The State Department just spent $177 million of human rights money on far-right pet projects. Afrikaner rights in South Africa, “Western civilizational norms,” and $2 million specifically earmarked for groups that reject what the grant documents call “gender ideology.” They burned through the money on the last day of the fiscal year so it wouldn’t lapse. That’s not governance, that’s a smash-and-grab at closing time.
One of the biggest recipients is the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation, run by a former Trump policy adviser. So human rights funds are now paying a Trump ally’s org to fight communism, which in this administration’s vocabulary means anything left of feudalism. Meanwhile the actual human rights work those millions were supposed to fund just… stops.
Yesterday they left the anti-corruption watchdog. Today they’re laundering the human rights budget through ideology shops. The pattern stopped being subtle a long time ago. They don’t need it to be.