The Trump administration’s ongoing effort to shut down or massively cut the U.S. Agency for International Development is putting the future of a major Catholic relief agency at risk, despite the Republican portraying himself as an ally to Catholics on the campaign trail.
Observers of the Catholic group argued that the White House’s attacks on the U.S. aid agency, which have included Trump adviser Elon Musk claiming without evidence the administration is a “criminal organization,” go against bedrock Christian and American principles of supporting the less fortunate.
Catholic Relief Services, founded in 1943 by U.S. Catholic bishops, is the single largest recipient of funds from the development agency, which funds around half of the religious aid group’s $1.5 billion budget.
The campaign to slash the U.S. aid agency has prompted protests from Democrats, who rallied outside agency headquarters and have threatened to withhold future State Department confirmations until the group’s funding is restored.
"CRS is the Gospel at work and reflects the best of American values," John Carr, former executive director of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' Department of Justice, Peace and Human Development, told the National Catholic Reporter.
