Sen. Rick Scott to USAID: Thank You for Helping the People of Venezuela

May 22, 2019

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Yesterday, Senator Rick Scott sent a letter to U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Administrator Mark Green to thank the agency for its ongoing work in response to the crisis in Venezuela. Senator Scott traveled to the Colombia-Venezuela border last month, where he visited the USAID-supported Divine Providence food kitchen in Cúcuta and met with government officials on how the United States can continue to support freedom throughout Latin America.

Read the full letter HERE or below.

May 21, 2019

The Honorable Mark Green

Administrator

U.S. Agency for International Development

1300 Pennsylvania Avenue NW

Washington, D.C. 20004

Dear Administrator Green:

I write to you today to thank you and your team for the incredible work you are doing in Colombia in response to the crisis in Venezuela. I saw firsthand how the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) serves the Venezuelan people, and I am humbled by your commitment to serve others.

For two decades, the socialist and oppressive governments of Hugo Chávez and his successor, Nicolás Maduro, have been destroying the economy and the freedom of the Venezuelan people. Maduro and his Cuban allies have been shooting, beating, imprisoning and torturing the Venezuelan people. Maduro’s ongoing genocide and acts of terror against his people has led to one of the worst humanitarian crises in Latin American history. Millions of Venezuelans have fled to surrounding countries seeking refuge from the oppressive regime. Colombia has taken the brunt of the migration crisis, accepting 4,000 refugees daily. 

Under your direction, USAID has provided more than $91 million to Colombia in response to this crisis. This assistance is providing the necessary food, water, shelter and other basic needs to care for the refugees. The work that your team puts into the planning and execution of your humanitarian relief plans is remarkable.

In Colombia, I saw the devastation caused by the Maduro regime, and I saw the responses by USAID. I served meals and spoke with several Venezuelan families at the USAID-supported Divine Providence food kitchen. Approximately 5,000 meals are prepared every day to provide for Venezuelan refugees, most of which enter Colombia temporarily just for a hot meal. I also toured Colombia’s Tienditas Humanitarian Assistance Center, where food, medicine, medical supplies, hygiene kits and nutrition products are stored. Lastly, I met with Martha Aponte in Cúcuta to discuss the enormous financial pressures of the migration crisis in Colombia and USAID’s efforts to ease this strain.

I am greatly appreciative of USAID’s efforts to assist Colombia and support migrants fleeing the crisis in Venezuela. Thank you for supporting the fight for freedom and democracy.

Sincerely,                                          

                       

Rick Scott
United States Senator         

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