The Trump administration’s funding cuts are impacting pro-democracy organizations

AYESHA RASCOE, HOST:

A White House order to freeze funding has stopped practically all U.S. government work supporting democracy, human rights and press freedom around the globe. For the world’s most powerful democracy, this is unprecedented. The order has forced prodemocracy organizations, which were created by Congress in the first place, to furlough most of their employees, close overseas offices and halt hundreds of projects. NPR’s Frank Langfitt is following the story and is with us now. Good morning, Frank.

FRANK LANGFITT, BYLINE: Hey, good morning, Ayesha.

RASCOE: So take us to the start of all of this.

LANGFITT: Yeah, Ayesha, beyond, you know, several weeks ago, as people would remember, President Trump – he issued that executive order suspending all foreign aid. It’s – as we’ve reported, it affected USAID but also these other organizations, such as the National Endowment for Democracy, which is known around here in D.C. as the NED. It’s had to suspend grants that it makes in 100 countries. Another organization, National Democratic Institute, has had to put two-thirds of its Washington-based staff on leave, and they’re in the process of closing down more than half of their offices abroad.

RASCOE: And what’s Trump’s rationale for halting this funding?

LANGFITT: Well, the administration says it needs 90 days to review the programs to make sure that they fit with the president’s America First agenda. And people in the Trump administration have attacked some of these organizations. As Deepa was saying, talking about Elon Musk, you know, he, without any evidence, has called the National Endowment for Democracy a scam and an evil organization. Some conservative think tanks here in town says the NED, as it’s known, meddles in the internal affairs of other countries.

But by contrast, the NED says it’s out there, you know, fighting for democracy and freedom in the world’s most authoritarian countries. And leaders of some of the human rights group that get money from the NED, that is supported by the NED, said this funding freeze is just really a gift to dictators in Russia and China. And one of them told me a couple days ago, quote, “Xi Jinping must be laughing his butt off.”

RASCOE: So how is this playing out on the ground overseas?

LANGFITT: Yeah, let me give you an example from USAID, which also promotes democracy abroad. They’ve been sending money to a local foundation in Thailand called Manushya. And this organization oversees safe houses for people who are on the run from authoritarian regimes like Cambodia. And these kinds of people are targeted inside Thailand. I’ll give you an example. Last month, there was a Cambodian opposition politician who was assassinated there. Now, without USAID funding, these safe houses are now closing, leaving about 35 people on their own.

This morning, Ayesha, I actually spoke to one of them who’s living in a safe house. He’s a member of an outlawed Cambodian opposition party, and he and his wife and his three kids – they’re going to have to leave next month. And he’s really worried that it’s going to be that much easier for Thai police to find and arrest him. And, of course, he asked us not to use his name for his own safety. But this is how he said he felt when he first learned that there would be no more funding and he’d have to leave the safe house.

UNIDENTIFIED SAFE HOUSE RESIDENT: I think my heart is broken. My soul is out of my body.

LANGFITT: I think my heart is broken, he says.

RASCOE: Frank, the U.S. has supported these efforts and these prodemocracy organizations for many decades. And as we said, Congress founded them, right?

LANGFITT: Yeah, you’re exactly right. I mean, Congress created the National Endowment for Democracy and its sister organizations. This was back in the early 1980s, and the idea was to strengthen Democratic institutions around the world, and support was bipartisan. Now, this was inspired, Ayesha, in part by a – like, a really famous speech by President Ronald Reagan to the British Parliament in 1982. Let’s take a listen.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

RONALD REAGAN: If the rest of this century is to witness the gradual growth of freedom and democratic ideals, we must take actions to assist a campaign for democracy. We must be staunch in our conviction that freedom is not the sole prerogative of a lucky few but the inalienable and universal right of all human beings. The objective I propose is quite simple to state – to foster the infrastructure of democracy.

LANGFITT: And, Ayesha, the Trump administration is now trying to dismantle that infrastructure.

RASCOE: You’ve been talking to people who work for these organizations. Why do they think the Trump administration is targeting them?

LANGFITT: Well, these people say the Trump administration doesn’t really believe the U.S. should be in the business of spreading or defending democracy abroad. And another they say is payback because a lot of people who work in these organizations are Democrats.

RASCOE: Is there any chance the money might start flowing again?

LANGFITT: Yeah, it could. You know, there’s – some recipients of foreign aid sued the government. And last week, a federal judge ordered the administration to temporarily lift the funding freeze and told the government that by Tuesday – this Tuesday – it has to explain how it’s complying with the order. Of course, the longer, you know, Ayesha, any organization has little or no money, the more likely it is to collapse and die.

RASCOE: That’s NPR’s Frank Langfitt. Frank, thanks so much.

LANGFITT: Good to talk, Ayesha.

Copyright © 2025 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information.

NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.