Devex: Trump’s Central America threat backs USAID chief into a corner
“United States lawmakers who oppose President Donald Trump’s repeated proposals to slash U.S. foreign affairs spending have largely spared the administration’s development chief from their denouncements. Mark Green, the Trump-appointed U.S. Agency for International Development administrator, is both a former congressman who enjoys a solid rapport with bipartisan lawmakers and a long-time development leader who has shown his commitment to the cause. When he testifies about U.S. foreign assistance on Capitol Hill, some members of Congress have a tendency to couch their objections to Trump’s proposals with phrases such as, ‘this is not directed at you,’ or ‘you’re in an awkward spot.’ Their questioning can give the impression that they regard Green as an administration official not responsible for the administration’s policies or positions. … But for parts of Wednesday’s [Senate Committee on Foreign Relations] hearing, that dynamic appeared to reach its limit…” (Igoe, 6/21).