Ex-USAID Chief says dictators are “celebrating” Trump’s plan to cut the agency’s staff from 10,000 to fewer than 300 employees

COOPER: “You think this is a victory for dictators, autocratic regimes around the world who are competing… for influence?”

SAMANTHA POWER: “Well, it’s not even an opinion. They are out relishing this moment and celebrating it, including a statement—an official statement—from the Russian Foreign Ministry today.

“So this is a disaster, not just from a humanitarian standpoint, from the standpoint of all the beneficiaries who may, in fact, die because they won’t have access to U.S. resources. But it’s a disaster for U.S. national interests and national security.”

COOPER: “You think this is a victory for dictators, autocratic regimes around the world who are competing… for influence?”

SAMANTHA POWER: “Well, it’s not even an opinion. They are out relishing this moment and celebrating it, including a statement—an official statement—from the Russian Foreign Ministry today.

“So this is a disaster, not just from a humanitarian standpoint, from the standpoint of all the beneficiaries who may, in fact, die because they won’t have access to U.S. resources. But it’s a disaster for U.S. national interests and national security.”