Marco Rubio Attempts To Turn Tables On Gabe Amo As He Goes Scorched Earth Grilling Him About Food Aid

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At today's House Foreign Affairs Committee, Rep. Gabe Amo (D-RI) questioned Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Transcript

00:00Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

00:02Secretary Rubio, do you know what this is?

00:06I'm sorry, my Lasix is not as good.

00:08That's all right, I'll explain.

00:09This is a ready-to-use therapeutic food, also known as a rough.

00:12It's produced in the United States by Adesia Nutrition in Rhode Island

00:15and Manny Nutrition in Georgia from American-grown farm products.

00:21A single box that I have right here of this miracle product

00:24can save a child from dying of severe acute malnutrition in only 6 to 10 weeks.

00:31Now, since January, you have promised over and over again

00:34that foreign aid freezes will not include life-saving assistance.

00:39Rough save the lives of children who are starving around the world.

00:43Do you agree that this product is life-saving aid?

00:45It can be, yes.

00:47Well, Secretary Rubio, the World Food Program estimates

00:50that 8,000 children die from hunger every day.

00:53Until last Friday, over 123,000 rough boxes were purchased for Sudan

01:01but were sitting in Rhode Island in a warehouse

01:04because of State Department delays.

01:06So my question for you is, are you doing everything you can

01:08to keep starving children from dying?

01:10There was no State Department delays to that being deployed.

01:12There may have been other delays, but it wasn't State Department.

01:14There were State Department delays.

01:16And it is clear that you have not done everything you can do

01:19to keep these kids from starving

01:20because there are another 185,000 boxes of roughs

01:26that the U.S. government and taxpayers have already paid for

01:29sitting in that same warehouse,

01:31all because the State Department doesn't have a plan,

01:34doesn't have its stuff together to get this rolling.

01:36So I can think of several countries where this aid is desperately needed,

01:40where these boxes of roughs could save hundreds of thousands of children's lives.

01:44And these delays have real consequences, not just for starving children,

01:48but also jobs at home.

01:49I talked to the CEO of Adija who said they had to lay off 10% of their team

01:55due to the lack of payments from the U.S. government

01:57and the lack of clarity in March.

02:00So, Secretary Rubio, will you commit to making decisions needed

02:04to move the remaining 185,000 boxes of roughs

02:08to countries that need them by the end of this week?

02:11Well, I'd be interested to learn what those impediments are.

02:12Well, we've been talking about this for a while.

02:14I've sent you letters since January.

02:15But there's no impediment on our end of distributing that.

02:16There are impediments.

02:18I'm speaking directly to the source.

02:19Part of it, Sudan is a war zone.

02:19Secretary, I'm reclaiming my time.

02:22This exists as a problem and you have not acted.

02:26That's false.

02:26And maybe it's the case that you have too many jobs

02:28because I know it's the case.

02:30It must be a lot to be the National Security Advisor,

02:33the National Archivist, the head of USAID.

02:38That's a lot.

02:38I understand a lot of footballs.

02:40Do you a football player?

02:41That's a lot of balls to catch.

02:42But the issue here is we have children who are dying.

02:46So will you commit to continuing to fund the production,

02:50transportation, and distribution of these domestically produced

02:52life-saving products to save starving children around the world?

02:55They're approved now.

02:56They are not moving.

02:58I just told you about 185,000 boxes in Rhode Island.

03:01I live there.

03:02And you need to figure out why they're not moving

03:03because it is an impediment from us.

03:05Sir, you need to figure out.

03:06That's actually your job, sir.

03:07No, it's no impediment from the State Department.

03:09Well, Mr. Secretary, it seems like you will not make a commitment.

03:12Sir, it seems like you refuse to make a commitment.

03:14We do more of that than anybody in the world,

03:15and we're going to continue to do it.

03:17We're going to continue to do food aid.

03:18We're going to do more food aid than any country on the planet times 10.

03:21Well, that's a lot of talk.

03:23But I believe seeing is believing,

03:25and there is not to be seen.

03:27Those are numbers.

03:28Those are facts.

03:29We do more foreign aid.

03:30Well, I've got numbers.

03:30I've got 185,000 boxes that aren't moving.

03:34So, Mr. Secretary, I'm going to do you a little favor.

03:36We authorize them.

03:37Mr. Secretary, I'm reclaiming my time, sir.

03:40I'm going to do you a favor.

03:40They're authorized to move.

03:41When you ask questions, you don't want anybody to answer.

03:42I'm telling you, they're allowed to move.

03:43And I have a question for you, and you're compelled to answer.

03:46Why don't you take 10 seconds now to turn to your staff and say,

03:49let's get this fixed?

03:50My staff knows that this has been fixed.

03:52There's no impediment on the State Department side.

03:53Well, then you have not proven that to me.

03:57If the people who are affected, both here domestically and around the world,

04:02are not receiving this life-saving product.

04:04They are receiving it.

04:05Look, you staked your career in the Senate on supporting humanitarian aid.

04:10But now you won't make a commitment.

04:11Or you're saying things have been done that haven't been done.

04:13I already made a commitment.

04:14You've made a commitment?

04:15We do more food aid than anybody in the world.

04:17We're doing more today than anybody in the world.

04:19Secretary, I'm reclaiming my time.

04:20You are speaking in generalities.

04:22I'm talking about specifics.

04:23I'm speaking in specifics.

04:24We do more than anybody in the world.

04:25And we're doing more than anybody in the world right now at this very moment.

04:28Again, that's hyperbole, sir, because this has been disrupted because of your freezing of aid.

04:33Who does more food aid than the United States?

04:35Sir, why are you asking me questions?

04:37My job is to ask you questions.

04:38Well, you're the one that's claiming that we're not.

04:39Secretary, I'm reclaiming my time.

04:41Secretary, I'm reclaiming my client.

04:42This is why I'm introducing the Rubio Act.

04:45So you focus on the one job that the Senate gave you to serve as our Secretary of State

04:50because you are clearly distracted.

04:53Okay?

04:54After the last few months, I understand why President Trump has such colorful nicknames

04:58for you.

04:59You're obedient.

04:59You're following the rules.

05:01You will do anything the President tells you to do without regard for the law, the Constitution,

05:05America's security, or standing as a leader in the world.

05:09Unlike you, I do not fear crossing Donald Trump.

05:12I refuse to give up on these children.

05:14I will be calling you once a week until you take action to fund rough and actually prove

05:19that you're doing this job to make sure you know how many children have died on your watch.

05:24Will you pick up my call?

05:25No children are dying on your watch.

05:26Will you pick up my call, sir?

05:28Pick up your call?

05:28When I call you to check in on your progress.

05:31Our progress has already been made.

05:32We already do more than anybody in the world.

05:34But he's made some strong accusations here.

05:36We're doing more than anybody in the world.

05:37That food is being distributed now, and he knows that.

05:41Very good.

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