Daily Update - February 4, 2026

11 Republicans Vote to Keep Corrupt USADF Open

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About Reuel Sample

This is the Wilmington Standard Daily Update for Wednesday, February 4th, 2026.

Just last week, the Washington Times reported Mathieu Zahui - chief financial officer at the United States African Development Foundation – or USADF - has confirmed the Trump administration’s claims of fraud by agreeing to plead guilty to directing hundreds of thousands of dollars in taxpayer money to a friend who performed little actual work. Mr. Zahui would then receive kickbacks from these overseas grants.

The USADF locked its doors last year when Elon Musk and his DOGE auditing team tried to get to the bottom of the expenditures of that group. This organization is supposed to be an independent aid agency that ships taxpayer money to other organizations that promise to promote health and welfare in Africa. The Daily Wire reported way back in May of 2025 that even those who identified as liberal were aghast at how badly the agency was run.

The Republicans in the US Senate had a chance to shut down the USADF on Tuesday. All it took was a simple majority. The agency had nothing to do with furthering American interests in Africa – and it certainly was not helping the people on that continent. Yet 11 Republicans – including Thom Tillis of North Carolina – joined every Democrat to table the motion to shut the agency down.

And they are not saying why.

The Daily Wire – considered a very Republican/Conservative friendly news organization – reached out to every Republican who voted against shutting down the agency. Not one – not one – responded. And believe it or not – none of them are up for reelection this year – including Senator Tillis who is leaving the Senate at the end of his term this year.

This is what drives Republican voters nuts. Closing this agency would have done very little in terms of our national debt or our federal outlays. It has nothing to do with national security, or our relationships with countries in Africa. But, it represents everything that led to Republicans taking control of the White House last year - government waste and government fraud and the need to bring these agencies to heel. And these 11 Republicans failed to follow through.

In the words of Utah’s Senator Mike Lee who sponsored the bill, we “look forward to hearing [them] explain their votes.”

For the Wilmington Standard, I’m Reuel Sample. Thanks for listening.

Reuel Sample is the Editor-in-Chief of The Wilmington Standard. A graduate of Grove City College and Princeton Theological Seminary, he has served as both a Presbyterian Pastor and a Navy Chaplain. He is the product of a classical liberal arts education combined with real world experience in politics and business and conservative Christian worldview firmly rooted in the Reformed tradition. He is the host of several podcasts including the NHC GOP Podcast, the Pastor's Voice, and co-hosts the Nikki and Reuel Podcast Experience. An avid sailor, he has sailed around the world as a youth and to the Azores as a teen as well as extensive trips up and down the east coast of the United States. He is honored to be married to his wife Pam and makes his home in Wilmington, NC.