The federal government shutdown has taken a dramatic turn, with Louisiana Republican Sen. John Kennedy seizing the Senate floor Friday to lay bare a list of what he calls “wasteful” and “ridiculous” foreign aid projects he claims Democrats are demanding be reinstated before they agree to reopen the government.
Kennedy accused Senate Democrats of holding the country “hostage” after they blocked a bipartisan stopgap funding bill, prolonging the shutdown into next week.
He argued that the provisions, which Republicans had previously stripped from the budget, are now being weaponized by the party’s left flank to keep the government closed.
“We just eliminated money for all forms of media in the Affordable Care Act. Now those are the demands. I’ll mention one more. Congresswoman Ocasio-Cortez got very, very upset, as did the socialist wing of the party, when the president sent over what’s called a rescission package. Basically, President Trump just said we want you to take some stuff out of the budget that we think is wasteful, and we did,” Kennedy said. “And that upset the congresswoman. She’s entitled to be upset if she wants to, but that really upset the socialist wing of the party. And so we took out, and here’s what they want us to put back in.”
The list of projects Kennedy claimed Democrats are insisting on restoring includes:
- $3.6 million for cooking and dance workshops for male prostitutes in Haiti.
- Over $4.2 million for LGBTQ projects in the Western Balkans and Uganda.
- $6 million to subsidize Palestinian media outlets.
- $3 million for circumcision and vasectomies in Zambia.
- More than $833,000 for transgender people in Nepal.
- $500,000 to purchase electric buses in Rwanda.
- $300,000 to sponsor a pride parade in Lesotho.
Kennedy framed the shutdown as a fight over priorities, not procedure. Republicans, he said, are simply asking for a six-week extension to negotiate a full budget after funding expired.
“That’s what this fight is all about,” Kennedy said. “What we had asked for and what we’re still asking for is to let’s continue [to] negotiate… for six more weeks and try to agree on a budget. That’s all we’re asking.”
The bipartisan measure, which would have kept the government open through November 21, failed on a 54–44 tally, marking the fourth time Senate Democrats have voted against measures to immediately end the funding lapse.
Only three Democrats crossed the aisle to support the bill, with Kentucky Republican Sen. Rand Paul casting the lone “No” vote from his party.
As the shutdown drags on, Senator Kennedy’s revelations are set to fuel the political fire, shifting the focus of the standoff from general appropriations to specific, controversial spending items.
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