President Biden's State Department Under Fire: Millions Funneled Into 'Pet Projects' As Delays Mount

Senator Eric Schmitt, a Republican from Missouri, recently sent a letter to U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, demanding answers regarding the significant amount of money the department has invested in diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, as well as environmental funding abroad. This comes as Schmitt's constituents experience "unprecedented delays" in passport processing times.

Schmitt expressed his concerns, stating, "Unnecessary expenditures by the State Department on pet projects of little or no value to the American taxpayer, all while continuing to struggle with the passport backlog, underscores how misplaced Antony Blinken and this entire Administration's priorities are."

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He further emphasized his commitment to holding the administration accountable, saying, "I promised Missourians that I would hold this Administration's feet to the fire on this issue, and I intend to get to the bottom of this irresponsible spending and lack of action on passport backlogs."

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In his letter, Schmitt highlighted the department's decision to allocate funds to these projects instead of hiring additional employees to address the backlog of passport applications. He listed several specific expenditures, including $120,000 for "Gastrodiplomacy," $1,565,000 for foreign sports or Esports-Adjacent Projects, $400,000 for Chinese efforts to combat wildlife trafficking, and $30,699,850 for DEI or environmental funding abroad.

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July 25, 2023

Schmitt pointed out that due to the department's focus on these pet projects rather than improving passport processing times, his office has received numerous requests for assistance with application processing. Since taking office in January, his team has received over 500 requests regarding delays in receiving passports.

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Schmitt concluded his letter by posing a series of questions to the State Department. He inquired about the department's efforts to hire additional staff for passport processing, whether there is currently a shortage of individuals to handle passport applications, and which specific initiatives receive funding from the $30 million allocated to DEI initiatives and international environmental funding.