SerpApi.Org
Republican Sen. John Cornyn (TX) caved on the threat he made Monday to vote against two of President Donald Trump’s anti-LGBTQ+ ambassadorial nominees if the White House didn’t provides proof that it has distributed congressionally pre-approved funds for the President’s Emergency Plan For Aids Relief (PEPFAR), a global HIV-prevention program.
On Wednesday, Cornyn voted with the 11 other Republican members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to advance the nominations of both Jamaica ambassadorial nominee Kari Lake or Slovakia ambassadorial nominee Doug Mastriano. All 10 of the committee’s Democratic members voted against the nominees. Cornyn initially said that he expected other Republicans to join him in voting against the nominees over the HIV funding.
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Cornyn said in the committee’s Wednesday hearing that the White House had agreed to release some of the PEPFAR funding, Politico reported. Cornyn provided no other information, including what assurances he has that the White House will follow through on its agreement or whether he will publicly discuss any evidence showing that the White House has spent the funds as promised.
In a recent interview, Cornyn estimated that $1.3 billion in PEPFAR funds are ready for immediate release, but he wants to learn more about the $10 billion that Congress previously approved for the program to release since the start of Trump’s second term in January 2025.
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While Secretary of State Marco Rubio signed a waiver allowing PEPFAR and other “life-saving humanitarian assistance” funding to continue, even after Trump ended nearly all U.S. foreign aid, numerous groups have cited a discontinuation of PEPFAR funds for forcing them to end medication treatment and testing, close clinics, layoff staff, and leave adults and children with HIV with few healthcare options.
Cornyn told the aforementioned publication that the funds will help save lives and maintain a positive presence for the United States in Africa, where Russia and China are competing for political influence.
“This is one of the really important elements of our soft power too, because America needs friends in Africa,” Cornyn said. “So, not only is it the right thing to do from a compassionate point of view, it’s in our self interest to make sure this money is used to promote American soft power and to make friends.”
Kari Lake & Doug Mastriano are rabidly anti-LGBTQ+ MAGA devotees
Kari Lake is an unhinged conspiracy theorist who lost the 2022 election for Arizona governor and the 2024 election for U.S. Senate and refused to concede. She has expressed anti-LGBTQ+ views and made derogatory comments about the LGBTQ+ community.
During her 2022 campaign, she appeared in an ad with a pastor who called LGBTQ+ people “child molesters.” Lake has previously voiced support for anti-trans policies including sports and bathroom bans. She has also written posts against exposing kids to “drag queens” and “woke” teachers. A local drag queen called her a hypocrite because she once took her child to see him perform in drag.
In February 2022, Lake said she would not support legislation expanding or protecting LGBTQ+ state civil rights protections.
Lake currently serves as Senior Advisor for the U.S. Agency for Global Media, and has used the position to censor and shutdown Voice of America and Radio Free Europe, two congressionally funded international media organizations that broadcast uncensored news, analysis, and open debate to countries where a free press is threatened or banned.
As a state senator, Doug Mastriano supported anti-LGBTQ+ bills including a bill that would ban transgender girls from playing on girls’ teams and a bill that would force trans people to use public bathrooms matching the gender they were assigned at birth. He has also endorsed legislation that would stop same-sex couples from adopting children.
His 2001 college thesis expressed also disgust for anyone who doesn’t hold the view that homosexuality is a form of “aberrant sexual conduct,” according to The Washington Post.
Trump endorsed both Lake and Mastriano during their campaigns, and they have endorsed and praised Trump as well.
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