Friend –

The shutdown, as many expected but everyone hoped would be avoided, continues. And while the negotiation battles are totally focused on domestic issues, I’ve got my eyes on what this all means for America’s interests in the world.

I have included the details of the implications for the State Department and related agencies below, but to be honest, I can’t get the image out of my mind of Xi Jinping, Vladimir Putin, and Kim Jong Un together while in Beijing just last month. They must be giddy as we move our diplomats off the global playing field.

Given the growing alignment of our rivals, this really is a time for America to show up, not shutdown.

We’ve included a lot in this GLOBAL GAB edition that I think will be of great interest:

• The Shutdown Showdown
• Rescissions Rundown
• Some Progress on Other Assistance Programs
• Impact of World Leaders at UNGA
• The New America First Global Health Strategy
• USGLC Happenings Around the Country
• An Enormous Loss – A Tribute to U.S. Army Aviator Andrew Kraus

On a personal note, I have always been proud that the issues that bring the USGLC community together garner strong support from both sides of the aisle and a broad spectrum of Americans. As our policy leaders work to find common ground to restart our government, I can only hope that our nation continues to heal and find ways to disagree with civility, especially in the aftermath of the horrific assassination of Charlie Kirk. There is simply no place for political violence in our society.

For me, this is a time of observing the Jewish New Year, and whether you celebrate or not, in the spirit of the holiday season, I send a wish of hope, kindness, and peace to all.

Looking forward to hearing your thoughts about the latest on the shutdown or any other issues in today’s GLOBAL GAB.

Best,
Liz

Liz Schrayer, USGLC

THE GLOBAL GAB: the shutdown -- stakes on the global stage
October 3, 2025

SHUTDOWN SHOWDOWN. The federal government is shut down for the first time since 2018 and while the big battle is around domestic policy, there are important implications for America on the world stage.

• America’s Team: Ahead of the shutdown, the State Department issued guidance that two-thirds of America’s diplomatic and development workforce would be sent home with only 10,344 of 26,995 direct-hire employees “excepted” to continue what is deemed as “essential” activities during the shutdown.
  
  
• Personnel: After months of efforts by the Administration to shrink the federal government, the White House Office of Management and Budget has provided guidance to agencies “to use this opportunity to consider Reduction in Force (RIF).” It is unclear what impact this will have on the State Department and related agencies which have already seen significant personnel cuts this year.
  
  
• Official Travel: Expect a lot less overseas travel by senior officials and diplomats to represent U.S. interests abroad. Right now, travel can only be excepted for “national security” reasons and other “excepted” grounds.
  
  
• Embassies, Consulates, and Passports: As for U.S. embassies and consular services, they are expected to remain open, though with a much smaller personnel footprint at a time when America’s rivals like Russia and China remain out on the field uncontested.

RESCISSION RUNDOWN. Coinciding with the beginning of the shutdown, nearly $5 billion in U.S. international affairs resources expired at midnight at the end of the fiscal year on September 30, following the Supreme Court’s preliminary ruling allowing the Administration’s “pocket rescission” to go into effect.

• Reduced Rescission: The loss of $5 billion to advance U.S. national interests from the pocket rescission is a serious concern, especially on top of an earlier rescission package. At the same time, it is worth noting that this pocket rescission was originally slated to be much larger at $16 billion. The USGLC community weighed in, and it was good to see Congress and the Administration work together to obligate an estimated $11 billion in U.S. international assistance funds rather than expire as originally feared.
  
  
• Innovation Labs: POLITICO reported one new concern – in addition to UN peacekeeping and economic development resources – the pocket rescission includes cuts to the GOP-friendly Feed the Future Innovation Labs embedded within state universities, which is rankling lawmakers since OMB assured Senators in June that these resources would be protected.
  
  
• Power of the Purse: Much of the debate around this “pocket rescission” focused on the unprecedented effort to rescind Congressionally appropriated funding without time for Congress to take action. During the debate, Members of Congress from both sides of the aisle focused on the serious implications this raised about the power of the purse between the executive and legislative branches.
  
  
• GOP Pushback: As part of the debate over this package, a number of senior Republican Congressional leaders spoke out against the Administration’s potential pocket rescission package, including Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) and Senators Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Thom Tillis (R-NC), Mike Rounds (R-ND), Jerry Moran (R-KS), and Roger Wicker (R-MS).
  
  
• The Chairwoman: Senate Appropriations chief Susan Collins (R-ME) told the press: “GAO has concluded that this type of rescission is unlawful and not permitted by the Impoundment Control Act."

SOME ASSISTANCE MOVING. Despite the pocket rescission effort from OMB – and prior to the shutdown - the State Department has begun announcing new commitments as the future of U.S. international assistance starts to take shape:

• Ending Mother-to-Child HIV Transmission: Per the State Department's announcement of a new partnership on September 4th, the Administration has set a goal to end mother-to-child HIV transmission during President Trump's second term. Through PEPFAR, the U.S. will partner with American company Gilead Sciences and the Global Fund to deliver lenacapavir, a breakthrough twice-yearly HIV prevention drug, reaching up to 2 million people by 2028.
  
  
• Philippines Partnership: The State Department announced $250 million in new assistance to the Philippines to address acute public health challenges like maternal health and disease prevention, which Secretary Marco Rubio called “a new era of America First assistance.”
  
  
• Food Assistance: In August, the Administration announced $52 million in life-saving food assistance to 1.9 million people in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Haiti, and Djibouti, which will deliver more than 12,700 metric tons of food from American farmers, and $93 million to treat nearly a million children suffering from malnutrition in 13 countries with life-saving, ready-to-use therapeutic food from American companies.
  
  
• Energy Cooperation: The U.S. and Côte d’Ivoire signed a new Regional Energy Compact agreement, a major U.S. investment through the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) to strengthen the country’s energy sector and advance regional energy integration across West Africa.
  
  
• DFC Reauthorization: Bipartisan efforts are underway in the Senate to reauthorize the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), with Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Jim Risch (R-ID) and Ranking Member Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) leading the charge. The DFC represents a key tool for advancing American economic interests and countering rival influence in critical global markets. Read USGLC’s statement on DFC reauthorization here.

LEADERS AT UNGA. One would expect that the “80^th” United Nations General Assembly session might garner much more of a celebration, but last week’s gathering was more toned down amid a slate of global challenges, including wars in Ukraine and Gaza and other ongoing humanitarian crises. Some highlights below, including President Trump’s positive shift towards Ukraine:

• Ukraine Can Win: After meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on the sidelines of UNGA, there was a significant shift, from President Trump stating Kyiv “is in a position to fight and WIN all of Ukraine back in its original form.” Secretary Rubio reinforced this message in a UN Security Council meeting that President Trump’s “patience is not infinite” and he is prepared to take additional steps to impose costs on Putin “for continued aggression” to ensure this war comes to an end.
  
  
  • Earlier this month, the DFC announced a $75 million fully matched contribution to the U.S.-Ukraine Reconstruction Investment Fund “to rebuild critical infrastructure, unlock natural resources, and generate economic prosperity for the United States and Ukraine.”
    
    
• Help for Haiti: Newly minted U.S. Ambassador to the UN Mike Waltz achieved an important diplomatic victory at the UN securing a UN Security Council resolution to expand the size and authority of the Kenyan peacekeeping force from less than 1,000 troops to more than 5,500 police and soldiers to increase stability.
  
  
• Middle East Peace Plan: Following meetings with Arab states in New York and negotiations with Israel. President Trump announced a 20-point peace plan for Gaza with Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu, which includes the full return of all hostages, guarantees on expanded humanitarian assistance for Gaza, a transitional international governance structure co-chaired by Trump and former Prime Minister Tony Blair, and an economic and reconstruction plan among other details. President Trump has given the leadership of Hamas until Sunday evening to respond.

GLOBAL HEALTH STRATEGY. Just ahead of UNGA, Secretary Rubio released the Administration’s America First Global Health Strategy signaling that the U.S. would remain “the world’s global health leader” and prioritize “global health diplomacy and foreign assistance to make America safer, stronger, and more prosperous.”

• The Strategy: The strategy is based on the three familiar pillars of Secretary Rubio’s criteria for international assistance – making America safer, stronger, and more prosperous – and highlights many of the successes the U.S. has seen from investments in global health, including saving 26 million lives over the past 25 years through PEPFAR.
  
  
• USGLC Blueprint: The strategy contains many of the big-picture ideas put forward this spring in USGLC’s Blueprint for America to Win the World, including unleashing America’s private sector, increasing burden-sharing so partner nations co-invest with the U.S., prioritizing life-saving assistance, and aligning assistance with strategic interests.
  
  
• Fighting Key Diseases: The strategy prioritizes America’s continued commitment to fighting four key diseases: HIV/AIDS, malaria, tuberculosis, and polio, with PEPFAR applauded throughout the document.
  
  
• Containing Outbreaks: As the world has experienced devastating pandemics and epidemics, the strategy places importance on strengthening global surveillance for disease threats, including an increased focus in high-risk countries, embedding health experts to every U.S. mission, and continuing to invest in the Field Epidemiology Training Program.
  
  
• Areas of Concern: Experts have pointed out critical missing areas, including no mention of key global health sectors like maternal and child health or the importance of Gavi. And while government-to-government partnerships are crucial, the expertise of many of America’s longstanding implementing partners was rejected.

USGLC ACROSS AMERICA IN AUGUST. During August recess, USGLC hosted Members of Congress with local leaders around the country, demonstrating how America's global engagement is a win for local communities—their economy and their security.

• Mars Hill, NC: Rep. Chuck Edwards (R-NC) joined USGLC for an “Economic Tour” at Advanced Superabrasives Inc. to see firsthand the “win-win” of American diplomatic leadership for North Carolina jobs. Rep. Edwards, who is Vice Chair of the House Appropriations National Security Subcommittee, toured the family-owned manufacturer, which produces equipment used for everything from defending Ukrainian airspace to exploring the surface of Mars.
  
  
• Charlotte, NC: Rep. Mark Harris (R-NC) joined International Justice Mission's Nate King and local leaders to explore how American values of justice and freedom are good for North Carolina and the world.
  
  
• Jacksonville, FL: Rep. John Rutherford (R-FL) met with community leaders alongside Ambassador Kelley E. Currie and Admiral Mark P. Fitzgerald to discuss how America's global engagement strengthens Florida's $200+ billion economy and amplifies Southern values on the world stage.
  
  
• Overland Park, KS: Rep. Sharice Davids (D-KS) and former Secretary of Agriculture Dan Glickman explored with Kansas leaders how America's global leadership translates into local jobs and international agricultural leadership for Midwest communities.
  
  
• Bethlehem, PA: Rep. Ryan Mackenzie (R-PA) connected with eastern Pennsylvania business and community leaders on how international engagement creates opportunities for regional economic growth.
  
  
• San Antonio, TX: Rep. Joaquin Castro (D-TX) joined Vice Admiral James D. Syring and Ambassador Luis G. Moreno by highlighting how Texas's massive export economy benefits from America's strategic international partnerships.
  
  
• Erie, PA: Rep. Mike Kelly (R-PA) joined Lt. General Christopher F. Burne to discuss how Pennsylvania's $79 billion in annual exports depend on the global stability that American leadership provides.

MOURNING THE LOSS OF A HERO. Last week, USGLC learned the devastating news that Andrew Kraus – who previously served as USGLC’s Director of Veterans Outreach – died in the U.S. Army Special Operations helicopter crash near Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington State.

Everyone from Vice President JD Vance to Maryland Governor Wes Moore to Franklin Graham has mourned this terrible loss. Andrew’s professionalism, deep commitment to service, and his love of country shone through every aspect of his life and work. His confidence and dedication came from an unmatched depth of character and patriotism.

As our nation grieves the loss of Andrew and his fellow servicemembers, America is safer and stronger because of their service and ultimate sacrifice. May their memory be a blessing.