In a bold move that puts American heroes first and reins in the globalist excesses of the Biden era, Republican Senators Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) and Mike Lee (R-UT) have introduced the *Veterans First Act of 2025*—a no-nonsense piece of legislation that redirects billions in taxpayer dollars *away* from the radical global agenda of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and *toward* repairing and rebuilding veterans’ homes here in the United States.
The legislation comes in the wake of a damning February 3 White House report that exposed USAID’s reckless spending on far-left pet projects abroad, from DEI workshops in Africa to taxpayer-funded “transgender operas” in Colombia. That was the last straw for Senators Tuberville and Lee, who’ve had enough of the Biden administration using American tax dollars to push progressive ideology around the world while ignoring the needs of those who’ve risked their lives for this country.
“Let’s be honest,” said Sen. Tuberville, who sits on the Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs. “USAID was largely being used as a Democrat slush fund under Joe Biden. We don’t need to waste billions of taxpayer dollars on research in Wuhan or gender ideology experiments overseas when our own veterans are living in substandard conditions right here at home.”
The numbers don’t lie: over 160 state-run veterans’ homes across the U.S. are in desperate need of repair and renovation. Many of these facilities provide long-term care to aging or disabled veterans, yet they’ve been neglected by the very government they served. According to the bill, $2 billion in redirected funds will fully cover all *Priority 1* VA State Home Construction projects that have already secured state-level matching funds—removing red tape and delivering results where they’re needed most.
“Our veteran heroes were willing to lay down their lives for our freedom,” Tuberville emphasized. “The least we can do is make sure they have a decent place to call home.”
Backing Tuberville is Rep. Dave Taylor (R-OH), who introduced companion legislation in the House. He didn’t hold back in his rebuke of the Biden-Harris administration’s misaligned priorities: “Taxpayer dollars were being wastefully sent overseas to fund DEI initiatives while the pressing needs of veterans here at home were ignored. That ends now.”
Taylor praised President Trump’s leadership, saying, “Under President Trump, Republicans are getting our Nation’s priorities straight, and our heroes are at the top of the list.”
Senator Mike Lee added weight to the initiative, making clear what the Veterans First Act is truly about: “Our bill takes $2 billion that was going to be thrown into the USAID money pit and distributed to radical progressive causes across the globe, and instead puts it toward desperately needed housing and hospitals for the men and women who defend America. We should put our veterans before any foreign interests or organizations.”
This legislation marks a sharp course correction from the Biden administration’s globalist agenda. While the Left seems more interested in exporting woke ideology than helping those who served, conservatives are stepping up with a clear message: take care of America first—starting with our veterans.
