Anne Applebaum: What USAID's Absence Looks Like on the Ground

<div>The United States, through USAID, not only supplied a big chunk of the world's humanitarian aid, it also provided almost all of the logistical support for other aid organizations to deliver relief as well. Now in Sudan, where the state has disintegrated and millions of people are trying to flee anarchy and civil war, virtually no Western organization is there to provide food and shelter. And no American is working on trying to end the conflict. Plus, Tim Cook joins the CEO suck-up to Trump, a top, well-regarded FBI official who was trying to hold the line under Kash has been pushed out, and Putin may be trying to pause Ukraine's punishing air war on Russia—but he's not showing any sign that he wants peace.<br /><br /><strong>Anne Applebaum </strong>joins Tim Miller.<br /><em>show notes<br /></em><br /></div><ul>

<li><a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2025/09/sudan-civil-war-humanitarian-crisis/683563/?gift=AO0MhSsTDaHgiP_RxFGfB3RCphTOAusgpDVdcfkOWmo&amp;utm_source=copy-link&amp;utm_medium=social&amp;utm_campaign=share">Anne's piece on Sudan, “The Most Nihilistic Conflict on Earth”</a></li>

<li><a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/DMH7wx5s3QB/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&amp;igsh=MWo3MnBxMnRjZm1kcA==">Anne's wildflower garden</a></li>

<li><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/08/07/us/politics/trump-fbi.html">The NYT on the continuing purge at the FBI</a></li>

<li><a href="https://bookshop.org/p/books/autocracy-inc-the-dictators-who-want-to-run-the-world-anne-applebaum/21057810">Anne's "Autocracy, Inc.," out in paperback Aug. 25</a></li>

<li><a href="https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-director-daniel-kehlmann/21930367">"The Director," book recommendation from Anne</a></li>

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