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Emily

@eklove.bsky.social
47 followers 65 following 39 posts

Reader. Writer. Fundraiser and storyteller in the humanitarian space. Born and raised in Appalachia, now based in Baltimore (again). 🐀

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Reposted by Emily
Jesse Eisinger @jeisinger.bsky.social · 11/03/2025
The email came from from the agency's acting executive secretary. He asked Kel McClanahan, a national security attorney, if this was legal. "No it is not," he said. It breaks the Federal Records Act. "Classified records are still federal records."
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Jesse Eisinger @jeisinger.bsky.social · 11/03/2025
DOCUMENT DESTRUCTION: My reporter Brett Murphy obtained a remarkable directive to folks at USAID: Empty the safes with the classified and personnel records and then, "Shred as many documents first, and reserve the burn bags for when the shredder becomes unavailable or needs a break."
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Emily @eklove.bsky.social · 11/03/2025
Breathtaking alright.
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Public Citizen @publiccitizen.bsky.social · 11/03/2025
me when i lie
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Emily @eklove.bsky.social · 11/03/2025
My #NGO has received only 1% of funds we are owed for work completed under #USAID contracts before the payment freeze. We are in the hole by double-digit millions of dollars, and we can't afford to carry that loss for long. We've already had massive layoffs, and the rest of us had to take pay cuts.
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Emily @eklove.bsky.social · 11/03/2025
My #NGO lost 100% of our #USAID funded programs. Now they're coming after our #USDA projects. We were told we had to submit justification for how each program aligns with this administration's priorities - in 200 characters. Tweet-length arguments for programs that have 60-page technical designs!
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Emily @eklove.bsky.social · 09/03/2025
His team sure can fire off all the maga talking points whenever I contact his office about anything.
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Anna Bower @annabower.bsky.social · 08/03/2025
DOGE cut off payments for the electricity, cell phone, and internet service of U.S. government employees who work in a high-risk area in Central America. Meanwhile, DOGE apparently plans to spend $25,000 to install a washer and dryer for their own personal use in a federal office building in DC.
Because DOGE has shut down USAID's payment system (Phoenix), our housing
electricity and the electricity in our USAID building have not been paid for. Mission
leadership has informed us that the only reason our electricity is on is because we've
asked for an extension from the electric company. The Mission asked for a waiver but
because our payment system is down, the Treasury has no way to issue money to USAID
and State Department representatives here are hesitant to make payments on our behalf
for fear of not being reimbursed.
7. Once the electricity goes out in our homes, we lose access to our security cameras and
radios. Again, I live in a high-risk post, so access to security systems is very important to
me.
8. I have been told by Mission leadership that the cell phone and internet bills are due this
week with no way to pay them. This is despite the so-called "waiver" process that has
been allegedly implemented to preserve such access.
9. Our cell phones and radios are also the only way to communicate with the Regional
Security Office about security threats. We have access to no other USAID security
systems.The agency is also considering spending about $25,000 to install a washer and dryer on the building’s 6th floor, according to a Feb. 25 invoice obtained by POLITICO. There is also a child’s play area decorated with a stuffed animal and toys, according to a photo of the room shared with POLITICO.

“People are definitely … sleeping there,” said one GSA staffer.
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Emily @eklove.bsky.social · 05/03/2025
1.7 million+ mothers gave birth with skilled help in sanitary conditions. Health workers trained to save lives. Millions of hungry children monitored and fed. But it's over. People will die. They’re already dying. 2/
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Emily @eklove.bsky.social · 05/03/2025
This graphic is for one maternal and child health program my NGO was part of through USAID. Starting in 2021, this cumulative data is the last we have before the #USAIDstopworkorder in January. (We learned last week the order is permanent for this project, along with 94% of all USAID programs.) 1/
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Emily @eklove.bsky.social · 05/03/2025
Yep, he owes my NGO millions for work we already did but haven’t been paid for. Like in the double digits worth of millions. We don’t just have that much sitting around, so it’s hurting a lot. We had to lay off nearly 200 ppl globally and the rest of us had to take a pay cut.
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Reposted by Emily
Alt USAID/ USAID Forever @altusaid.altgov.info · 05/03/2025
It's not a government it's a goddamned mafia takeover. It's life under control of armed cartels. Something we worked our asses off to help other countries escape.
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Public Citizen @publiccitizen.bsky.social · 05/03/2025
"Bring back law and order", says the convicted felon who is firing DOJ lawyers, destroying agencies illegally, and pardoning criminals that stormed the capitol to overturn an election.
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Emily @eklove.bsky.social · 03/03/2025
This is the DC metro area... WHY IS OUR INFRASTRUCTURE SO BAD?
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Emily @eklove.bsky.social · 03/03/2025
He also can't leave because he's parked in the hourly garage, and the payment machines aren't working.
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Emily @eklove.bsky.social · 03/03/2025
My husband is stuck at BWI during this power outage. He says when the lights first went out, they had to stand still in the dark for ~25 minutes until it was deemed safe to move. Very surreal. He also seems to be in a dead zone - can't get internet or text, but he can call me for news updates.
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Reposted by Emily
Alt National Park Service @altnps.bsky.social · 26/02/2025
The Capitol Police arrested a group of peaceful protesters who demonstrated today in the Cannon House Office Building against the Trump’s decision to freeze foreign aid and lay off thousands of USAID workers. The president has made his message clear: disagree with them, and they will come after you.
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Emily @eklove.bsky.social · 23/02/2025
Also to compare USAID to a drug cartel? Wow.
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Emily @eklove.bsky.social · 23/02/2025
What do you mean, no oversight? NGOs have to account for every cent & all program activities in quarterly financial & narrative reports. USAID also put out reports on their finances. I’m not saying it was flawless, but nobody has no proof of any actual, significant corruption.
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Emily @eklove.bsky.social · 20/02/2025
I fear we are already too far on the wrong side of history to self-correct. I have never been this scared.
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The Bulwark @thebulwark.com · 18/02/2025
"You cannot A-B test what happens when you dissolve USAID. Maybe you save a lot of money for two years or five years or twenty years, and the decision looks efficient. But then a crisis erupts." "Efficiency" does not straightforwardly apply to government.
thebulwark.com
‘Government Efficiency’ Is a Myth
DOGE isn’t about “efficiency.” It’s about vandalism.
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Melissa Nadia Viviana 🐸 @resistrebelrevolt.net · 18/02/2025
No wonder they want to defund NPR. ☺️
npr.org
Thousands of people protest in Washington, D.C., and across the U.S. on Presidents Day
The protestors participated in the 50501 Movement, which originated in response to the Trump administration and its efforts to cut government spending. Many chanted "Where is Congress?'"
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The Bulwark @thebulwark.com · 17/02/2025
"Donald Trump and JD Vance aren’t going to respond by saying, 'These Untermenschen deserve to die.' But you know who just might say that out loud? The ketamine-addled billionaire and his menagerie of 20-year-old incels." So make them say it.
thebulwark.com
How to Win the USAID Fight
Rules for Democrats.
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Emily @eklove.bsky.social · 17/02/2025
I work for an FBO. These are generally favored by conservative administrations, but we are under attack. Most of us operate independently of the denomination we’re affiliated with and are on our own for fundraising. We can’t just open the church coffers for more money to replace what was lost.
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Emily @eklove.bsky.social · 17/02/2025
Yes but orgs receiving USG $ are not allowed to evangelize so that part is moot. What faith-based NGOs offer is a long history of trust in the places where they work. 30-70% of health care in Africa (varies by country) is provided by faith-based hospitals. Decades of trust are eroding overnight.
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Emily @eklove.bsky.social · 17/02/2025
TLDR; when bootstrapping doesn't work, try bootlicking.
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Emily @eklove.bsky.social · 17/02/2025
And he hates where he came from and the vulnerability and dependence it all represents. He does not have an altruistic bone in his body. He just wants power and will do whatever it takes to get it and keep it. Even if he's just a puppet of the venture capitalists and the tech bros. 6/
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Emily @eklove.bsky.social · 17/02/2025
for the most part, you cannot bootstrap your way into positions of power. So what did JD do? He became a tool of the powerful in order to gain access to power. And instead of having compassion on those with less power, he became resentful and oppressive. Because the man hates himself. 5/
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Emily @eklove.bsky.social · 17/02/2025
who can scratch others' backs. And for someone who, like Vance, has always felt a little better and a little smarter than those around him in the working class neighborhoods and the hollers, this is a painful realization. Once again, he was not good enough. Because 4/
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Emily @eklove.bsky.social · 17/02/2025
Just because you are there -- just because you can do the work as well as they can -- doesn't make you one of the elite, powerful, connected, respected insiders. It's not about which fork to use at dinner. It's the fact you are not someone others are excited to meet, who has connections... 3/
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Emily @eklove.bsky.social · 17/02/2025
Smart enough to see there were better circles and positions of power that he didn't have, and that's where he wanted to be. So finally he makes it all the way to Yale... and he realizes he still does not fit in. This is the part I understand personally, because I had a rude awakening at college. 2/
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Emily @eklove.bsky.social · 17/02/2025
As an (actual) Appalachian who went to an Ivy League university, here's my take on why JD Vance is such a hateful bootlicker. Vance is a guy who never felt like he belonged. He didn't have money, he got bounced around as a kid, he wasn't "good enough" for his mom to stay clean. But he was smart. 1/
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Ron Filipkowski @ronfilipkowski.bsky.social · 15/02/2025
This is probably the most accurate take.
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jamelle @jamellebouie.net · 15/02/2025
the single most un-american and anti-constitutional statement ever uttered by an american president
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Robert Reich @rbreich.bsky.social · 15/02/2025
House Republicans released a draft budget that aims to cut $2 trillion in spending. The programs impacted could include Medicaid, SNAP, and education programs. Why the cuts? To finance another round of tax cuts for the wealthy and corporations. It's reverse Robin Hood.
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Emily @eklove.bsky.social · 15/02/2025
I rarely go on LinkedIn bc the vibe is yucky to me, but I logged in today. It was a hellscape of former NGO colleagues and USAID friends who lost their jobs and are looking for work. Literally one post after the next by skilled people with big hearts, and this is just one sector of many being cut.
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Alt National Park Service @altnps.bsky.social · 14/02/2025
One of our supporters shared this with us—people are getting creative tonight!
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actioncookbook @actioncookbook.com · 13/02/2025
looking back, AOL had it right. 30 hours of internet per month was the right amount.
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Heather Cox Richardson (TDPR) @hcrichardson.bsky.social · 13/02/2025
Folks: I am NOT affiliated with the group that is using my name to support an economic boycott. Please spread this post, if you would.
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Kara Swisher @karaswisher.bsky.social · 13/02/2025
Always be grifting, part 2: At least someone is buying them www.nytimes.com/2025/02/12/u...
nytimes.com
State Dept. Plans $400 Million Purchase of Armored Tesla Cybertrucks
The department plans to buy armored Tesla vehicles. Elon Musk, who is leading efforts to cut government spending, has won more than $13 billion in government contracts in the past five years.
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Emily @eklove.bsky.social · 12/02/2025
Meanwhile, the payment freezes mean NGOs have not been paid for work already done -- hamstringing their ability to implement other non-USG humanitarian programs. This is disastrous on every front.
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Robert Reich @rbreich.bsky.social · 12/02/2025
On Monday, USAID's IG warned that Trump's agency cuts have made it harder to root out fraud and abuse — and that nearly $500M in food was about to spoil due to Trump's foreign aid freeze. On Tuesday, Trump fired him. So much for transparency.
cnn.com
USAID IG fired day after report critical of impacts of Trump administration’s dismantling of the agency | CNN Politics
The inspector general of the US Agency for International Development was fired on Tuesday, a day after his office released a report critical of the Trump administration’s efforts to dismantle the agency, a source familiar with the matter told CNN.
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Emily @eklove.bsky.social · 12/02/2025
How is this not cause for IMMEDIATE disqualification? HOW???
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Emily @eklove.bsky.social · 12/02/2025
Disgusting.
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Pete Buttigieg @petebuttigieg.bsky.social · 11/02/2025
The CFPB is one of the American people’s best defenses against waste, fraud, and abuse. Demolishing it will, of course, lead to more waste, fraud, and abuse.
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The Bulwark @thebulwark.com · 11/02/2025
Even if you *agree* with Trump that we should greatly prioritize our own problems, you should support foreign aid. For a fraction of our budget, we can reduce the sorts of problems abroad that can eventually make it to our borders. Tamar Jacoby on USAID:
thebulwark.com
What USAID Really Did in Ukraine
Want to reform U.S. foreign aid or criticize its strategic importance? Start by getting the facts right.
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Emily @eklove.bsky.social · 11/02/2025
Is this a thing? I have yet to see anyone express regret — just pure GLEE at what’s happening.
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Emily @eklove.bsky.social · 11/02/2025
The USAID-funded NGO I work for spent the last 2 weeks scrubbing our website of similar language (but add climate change to the list). I was also told today that I’m not allowed to write about “maternal health.” MATERNAL HEALTH!
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Emily @eklove.bsky.social · 11/02/2025
I completely agree. Trump is stupid and narcissistic. Vance is actually evil.
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