In a stunning display of conservatives’ determination, two Republican senators have introduced a piece of legislation that will redirect taxpayer funding from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to rebuilding and repairing state veterans’ homes, hot on the heels of the discovery that a significant portion of USAID’s funding was being used to advance a woke agenda on a global scale.
For context, on April 10, 2025, Senator Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) and Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) introduced the Veterans First Act of 2025, a piece of legislation that hits particularly close to home for Sen. Tuberville, who is Alabama’s representative on the Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs. Sens. Tuberville and Lee proposed the act following a February 3 White House press release detailing the extent of waste and abuse at USAID.
In a statement released by Sen. Tuberville, the conservative policymaker explained the rationale behind the bill, describing USAID as an artifact of the Biden Administration and a long-running source of wasteful federal spending. Tuberville explained, “Let’s be honest, USAID was largely being used as a Democrat slush fund under Joe Biden.”
Continuing his statement, Sen. Tuberville pointed out that taxpayers’ money could be better spent on meeting the needs of America’s veterans rather than on leftist causes. Tuberville said, “We don’t need to waste billions of taxpayer dollars on research in Wuhan or transgender operas in Colombia when our own veterans are living in horrible conditions. There are more than 160 state veteran homes across the country that provide long-term care to eligible military veterans.”
Tuberville went on to explain the urgent need for funds to be reallocated to provide better housing for veterans. Providing context for where the money would go, he said, “This critical legislation would provide sufficient federal funding to cover all outstanding Priority 1 VA State Home Construction projects that already have the state-matching funds. Our veteran heroes were willing to lay down their lives for our freedom. The least we can do is make sure they have a decent place to call home.”
In addition, Tuberville clarified in his press release that he had significant help from Rep. Dave Taylor (R-OH), who brought the Veterans First Act before the House of Representatives. Chiming in to emphasize the need for the act to be implemented, Rep. Taylor said, “Under the Biden-Harris Administration, taxpayer dollars were wastefully sent overseas to fund DEI initiatives while the pressing needs of veterans here at home were ignored.”
Continuing, Rep. Taylor praised President Trump for opening the door to better use of taxpayer dollars. Rep. Taylor said, “Under President Trump, Republicans are getting our Nation’s priorities straight, and our Heroes are at the top of the list. I am proud to lead this bill to ensure State Veterans Homes across our country are equipped with the funding to meet our veterans’ needs.”
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Adding more gravitas to the statement issued on the Veterans First Act, Sen. Mike Lee shed even more light on how the act will reallocate funds, specifying that $2 billion will be directed towards veterans’ needs. Sen. Lee explained, “Our bill takes 2 billion dollars that was going to be thrown into the USAID money pit and distributed to radical progressive causes across the globe, and instead puts it toward desperately needed housing and hospitals for the men and women who defend America. We should put our veterans before any foreign interests or organizations.”
Watch Sen. Tuberville honor an Alabama veteran:
Featured image credit: Screenshot from the embedded video