The State Department has directed millions of dollars from its Democracy Fund to new priorities, including Afrikaner rights in South Africa, safeguarding “Western civilizational norms” and documenting “backsliding” in Europe tied to mass migration, a source familiar with the matter told CNN. The funds came from nearly $177 million in Democracy Funds. They were due to lapse Wednesday, the last day of the fiscal year.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio signed a memo to obligate the money despite ongoing holds, the source said. The department says it followed the rules. An unnamed State Department spokesperson said the department had completed congressional notification requirements.
The Administration’s Case
Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott cast the decision as a matter of keeping campaign promises. “The President promised to combat the destructive woke agenda that has done so much damage to our country and to the world,” Pigott said. “We will never apologize for defending Western civilization, opposing censorship, ending the era of mass migration, and taking action against government-sponsored race-based discrimination in South Africa.”
The grants had support from the highest levels of the White House, including Vice President JD Vance, the source said. The White House referred questions to the State Department.
Two proposed grants focus on Brazil and South Africa, where the administration has clashed with the governments. A third targets Nigeria, where the administration has alleged “mass slaughter” of Christians. One Brazil grant would combat alleged judicial overreach and censorship. Another proposed award, worth $5 million, would support “a civilizational alliance in Europe through research, public debates, and policy reform to safeguard freedom of expression, political competition, and national sovereignty.”
Samuel Samson, a top appointee in the State Department’s Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, argued last year for “civilizational allies” in Europe. “Our hope is that both Europe and the United States can recommit to our Western heritage,” he wrote, “and that European nations will end the weaponization of government against those seeking to defend it.”
The Congressional Objection
Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, had placed holds on 10 proposed awards totaling $22 million. That’s a fraction of the nearly $177 million fund.
Shaheen said Congress appropriated the money “on a bipartisan basis to support defenders of human rights, to assist victims of human rights violations and to instead promote the growth of democracy abroad.” She added: “In bypassing Congress, the Trump Administration is now using taxpayer funds to promote far-right organizations and programs in established democracies. This is a waste of resources and undermines American values and our relationships with democratic partners, including allies in Europe.”
Democracy Fund money typically supports programs in authoritarian countries or countries with limited democracies, the source said. The proposed grants, by contrast, include programs in Europe and the United Kingdom.
A Broader Reorientation
The move fits a pattern at the department. It follows the administration’s decision to cancel $810 million appropriated by Congress for refugees, immigrants and other services. CNN previously reported that diplomats would have to describe enforcement of diversity, equity and inclusion policies, alleged facilitation of mass migration, and government funding that supports abortion medications as “human rights infringements” in the next human rights report. An official said at the time the report would also shift toward “natural rights” such as freedom of speech, a move likely to target traditional European allies over alleged speech restrictions.
The Brazil grant has its own history. The administration imposed sanctions on Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes, who oversaw the trial of former President Jair Bolsonaro, a Trump ally. Those sanctions were lifted in December. The U.S. also revoked the visa of Brazil’s ambassador, and President Donald Trump met with Flávio Bolsonaro, Jair Bolsonaro’s son, who is running for president in Brazil.
Why This Matters:
The dispute turns on who decides what a congressional appropriation means in practice. Congress funded the Democracy Fund on a bipartisan basis, but its text leaves room for interpretation, and the administration has used that room to reorder priorities. Supporters see a long-overdue correction: a government finally spending foreign-affairs money on free expression and national sovereignty. Critics see a bypass of Congress.
The pattern is clear. Holds, last-day obligations and canceled appropriations—including the $810 million for refugees and other services—raise a practical question for lawmakers: if they want tighter control over how money is spent, they’ll likely need to write tighter language into the next spending bill. Allies in Europe are watching too.