Andy Kim talks USAID, potential for government shutdown

Sen. Andy Kim (D-N.J.), who began his government career working in the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), said in an interview with NBC News’ “Meet the Press” on Sunday that he is open to teaming up with Democratic colleagues in the U.S. Senate to withhold votes needed to pass legislation.

Kim said entering a shutdown is not ideal but may be necessary to combat President Donald Trump’s administration’s “dismantling” of the government.

“We are at a point where we are basically on the cusp of a Constitutional crisis,” the Senator told NBC News.

The discussion came just hours before the Trump administration closed the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s headquarters in Washington, D.C. The Bureau has previously engaged in work understanding Asian and Pacific Islander Americans’ relationships with financial institutions.

In an appearance on the Pod Save America podcast, Kim described USAID as a “tool” for the U.S. government’s diplomatic efforts.

“It’s always been this trio of defense, diplomacy, and development,” he said.

He argued that there was an irony that those who oppose China’s growing global influence also sought to revoke USAID’s funding. On NBC News, Kim said that although Americans may be growing away from foreign aid, they still strongly value diplomacy — including work done by USAID.

He said on the podcast that USAID’s work is a significant competitor to China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) that seeks to connect ends of the globe with infrastructure in the hopes of fostering trade relations.

Most recently, Panama — a prominent player in trade due to the Panama Canal that connects the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans — exited the BRI after Secretary of State Marco Rubio told Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino to back away from China or risk U.S. retaliatory action, according to CBS News.

Kim suggested that these communications were hypocritical in the context of the federal government’s attacks on USAID.

He added that much of the Trump administration’s actions have been “illegal” and that Republicans — who hold the Senate majority but have typically needed Democratic votes to pass legislation — should not expect Democrats’ cooperation.

“If the Trump administration gets away with this with USAID, they’re going to move it on to the Department of Education, … FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency), and other aspects of this,” Kim said on NBC News. “We have to show that this is illegal, this is not an action that the executive (branch) can do on their own, and that this is something that the American people deserve greater clarity (on).”