In a heated Senate session, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine tore into the Trump administration for burning 500 metric tons of food—enough to feed 27,000 hungry children for a month.
The food, bought with taxpayer money and stored in USAID’s Dubai office, was meant for malnourished kids. But instead of being distributed before it expired, it was incinerated—despite warnings months earlier.
“Why wasn’t the food given to children in need? Who made the decision to burn it?”
Kaine grilled Deputy Secretary Michael Rigas, who was caught off guard and couldn’t offer a clear answer.
Frustrated, Kaine reminded him,
“I asked this question yesterday so you could be ready today. Saying you’ll ‘look into it’ now is simply not good enough.”
With no proper explanation, Rigas admitted he had no answer—leaving senators and the public stunned over the shocking waste of life-saving aid.