US Agency for International Development

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US Tried to Sow Dissent By Building 'Cuban Twitter'

AP reveals secret program aimed at spurring Cuban Spring

(Newser) - The US in 2009 started work on a thoroughly 21st-century way to attempt to stir unrest in Cuba: It concocted a "Cuban Twitter" that it hoped would draw young people that it could prod toward dissent, an AP investigation has found. The text messaging platform, ZunZuneo—slang for a...

GOP Budget Would Kill 70K Kids: USAID Chief

Foreign aid vital for economy's future, Rajiv Shah argues

(Newser) - House Republicans' version of the budget deal to keep the government running would cause the deaths of at least 70,000 children around the world who depend on America aid, USAID chief Rajiv Shah testified yesterday. The agency predicts that 30,000 will die because of the scaling back of...

Democratic Rep. Wexler Will Resign Fla. Seat

48-year-old seeks private-sector paycheck with kids in college

(Newser) - Robert Wexler, a seven-term Democrat from Florida, is set to resign his house seat for a public-policy position. Though some Washington insiders speculate that Wexler, 48, will head the US Agency for International Development, others tell Politico that, with kids in college, Wexler needs an income bigger than a government...

Clinton Derides Vetting Process as a 'Nightmare'

Secretary frustrated by lengthy delays in filling top jobs

(Newser) - Hillary Clinton told USAID staff yesterday that the Obama administration's vetting process for top jobs has become a frustrating "nightmare," CNN reports. Clinton was asked why  the agency is still without a new administrator. "It's not for lack of trying," she responded. "It takes far...

US Diplomat Shot Dead in Sudan
US Diplomat Shot Dead
in Sudan

US Diplomat Shot Dead in Sudan

USAID official succumbs to injuries in Khartoum

(Newser) - A US diplomat has died of injuries suffered when he was shot five times early this morning as he rode through the streets of Khartoum, the AP reports. The attack immediately killed his driver. The shooting occurred a day after a joint African Union-United Nations force took over peacekeeping duties...

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