Secretary of State Marco Rubio delivered a powerful dose of truth to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Tuesday, revealing just how broken America’s foreign aid system had become before President Donald Trump’s administration overhauled it.

In a frank assessment based on internal White House findings, Rubio disclosed that under previous administrations, just 12 cents of every taxpayer dollar allocated to USAID actually reached those in need.

“That means that in order for us to get aid to somebody, we had to spend all this other money supporting this foreign aid industrial complex,” Rubio said, according to a State Department transcript.

Put simply, while struggling communities around the globe received pennies, the remaining 88 cents were absorbed by a bloated network of third-party contractors, bureaucrats, and consultants.

The top diplomat made it clear that under President Trump’s leadership, the administration moved decisively to clean house and restore purpose to America’s humanitarian efforts.

“We’re going to find more efficient ways to deliver aid to people directly, and it’s going to be directed by our regional bureaus, and it’s going to sponsor programs that make a difference, and it’s going to be part of a holistic approach to our foreign policy,” Rubio told lawmakers.

The Trump administration drew criticism from entrenched interests when it restructured foreign aid delivery by reintegrating USAID under the State Department. But Rubio defended the move as necessary and effective.

Even after implementing reforms, he noted, “the United States is still giving more humanitarian support than the next 10 countries combined.”

Rubio also used his testimony to draw a sharp contrast between American aid and China’s authoritarian ambitions. While the United States strives to provide life-saving humanitarian relief, Beijing engages in what Rubio described as economic exploitation.

“China doesn’t do humanitarian aid. China does predatory lending. That’s what Belt and Road Initiative is,” Rubio said, referencing China’s controversial global infrastructure scheme, often criticized as debt-trap diplomacy.

“They have zero record of doing humanitarian aid in the world, and frankly, they don’t know how to do it,” he said. “They have no interest in doing it.”

Instead, China’s foreign outreach is defined by coercion. “They’re adept at going into some country, making you a loan, and then holding that debt over your head,” Rubio warned.

Beyond the inefficiencies, Rubio voiced deep concern that the State Department itself had been sidelined by interagency turf wars, particularly under previous administrations. Instead of the nation’s diplomats leading America’s engagement abroad, foreign policy decisions were increasingly being dictated by the National Security Council or other bureaucratic bodies.

“We have these highly talented people, many of whom have served in multiple posts around the world and have a holistic view of how foreign policy needs to be conducted that were being edged out,” Rubio said, underscoring the loss of expertise and continuity in global affairs.

Under President Trump, the administration began restoring the State Department’s central role, putting experienced diplomats back at the heart of America’s foreign strategy—where they belong.

Rubio’s remarks reinforced a core conservative principle: responsible governance means cutting waste, empowering professionals, and ensuring taxpayer dollars serve the national interest—not a self-serving global aid cartel.