USAID, Corruption & the Fight Over Foreign Aid | Clifford Brown

What really happens to the billions of dollars America sends overseas in foreign aid?In this episode, I sit down with Clifford Brown, a former USAID Mission Director and legal advisor who spent 27 years working inside the U.S. Agency for International Development across Latin America, Central Asia, and Africa.We go behind the scenes of the foreign-aid system to explore where the money goes, how programs operate in countries facing corruption and political instability, why contractors are used, and what happens when aid reaches conflict zones.We also discuss the controversies surrounding USAID, allegations of corruption and funding diversion, the agency's destruction in 2025, and whether foreign aid still makes sense in a changing world.What works? What fails? Who benefits? And what would it take to rebuild the system?Learn more about Clifford Brown and his work: https://cliffordhbrown.com/