The Trump administration obligated more than $175 million from the State Department's human rights fund on Wednesday, hours before the deadline expired, according to a source familiar with the negotiations cited by the Guardian.
The fund allocation includes a $40 million grant for an anti-communism initiative, support for a group advancing white Afrikaner rights in South Africa, a campaign against Brazil's supreme court, and programs intended to support European groups protecting what the state department describes as "western civilizational norms."
The State Department did not respond to questions about whether it had obligated the funds or overridden congressional holds. The Guardian reported that Congress had raised concerns about the money's intended use and had requested the administration not proceed with the allocation.
The timing of the obligation, occurring just hours before the funding deadline expired, follows what the Guardian characterizes as requests from Congress opposing the redistribution. The source said Congress had raised concerns about how the money would be used.
The reallocation represents a substantial shift in how the State Department's human rights fund operates. The Guardian's reporting suggests the administration is redirecting resources historically devoted to human rights programs toward initiatives centered on anti-communism and ideological priorities abroad.
The administration has not explained the rationale for the specific grants or defended the allocation against congressional objections. The State Department's silence on the specific questions raised by the Guardian leaves the criteria for these funding decisions undisclosed.