Ron Paul Calls Out ‘Immoral’ and ‘Dangerous’ Scheme Operated by USAID in Ukraine

Shutting down the U.S. Agency for International Development is one of the best things the Trump administration can do, according to former Texas Congressman Ron Paul says.

“Audit USAID, then shut it down,” Paul said in a video posted to X in which he alleged that American tax dollars are the major prop supporting Ukrainian media outlets he said have been serving as “American propaganda outlets.”

In his video, Paul said, “The closing of USAID may be one of the most significant changes President [Donald] Trump has made among many dramatic actions in his first couple of weeks in office.”

Audit USAID…Then Shut it Down! pic.twitter.com/ooeFeQmAO3

— Ron Paul (@RonPaul) February 3, 2025

Paul called USAID “a key component of the U.S. government’s ‘regime change’ operations worldwide.”

“USAID spends billions of dollars every year propping up NGOs overseas that function as shadow governments, eating away at elected governments that U.S. interventionists want to overthrow. Behind most U.S. foreign policy disasters overseas you will see the fingerprints of USAID. From Ukraine to Georgia and far beyond, USAID is meddling in the internal affairs of foreign countries — something that would infuriate Americans if it was happening to us,” he said.

After Trump froze USAID’s cash, “we quickly learned just how pernicious the agency really is,” he said.

“The U.S. media reported that Ukrainian press outlets were scrambling to keep their doors open when the U.S. dollars stopped flowing. It is reported that 90 percent of the media outlets are funded by the U.S. government!” he said.

Paul said that in an era when the Biden administration was pumping billions into Ukraine during its war with Russia, the lack of an independent media in Ukraine means Americans have not actually known what it taking place there.

“This means there is virtually no independent media in Ukraine, only fake news outlets willing to toe the U.S. administration’s propaganda line. Does anyone think these wholly U.S.-funded ‘news’ outlets would ever publish a story the U.S. government did not want published?” he said.

“This is plainly immoral, but it is also dangerous,” Paul said.

“Most U.S. mainstream media stories about Ukraine have their origin in the reporting of the local media. From battlefield news to casualties to the state of the Ukrainian military, the news from Ukraine is being written by U.S. government-backed media outlets and then picked up by U.S. and other Western media,” he said.

Paul called that “a closed propaganda loop that not only propagandizes the U.S. citizens but also feeds false information into U.S. government outlets — such as Congress — that rely on mainstream U.S. media reporting for their news on Ukraine.”

“USAID needs a full and transparent audit. Americans deserve to know exactly what is being done in their name. Then the agency needs to be shuttered completely, and its employees sent home. That would go a long way toward making America great again,” he said.

Reporters Without Borders noted that “in Ukraine … 9 out of 10 media outlets rely on USAID funding.”

Others agreed that USAID props up Ukrainian media.

“Many Ukrainian media may now face the threat of closure or significant reduction in operations in the coming weeks,” said Sergiy Tomilenko, president of the National Union of Journalists of Ukraine, after Trump froze funding for USAID, according to the Voice of America.

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