Ranking Member Shaheen Opening Remarks for Nominations Hearing for Key Foreign Affairs Positions

WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, delivered opening remarks during a committee hearing on the nominations of Sarah Rogers to be the CEO of the U.S. Agency for Global Media, Rebekah Jurata to be the United States Executive Director of the International Monetary Fund and Jennifer Johnson-Carroll to be the Ambassador of Trinidad and Tobago.

You can watch her opening remarks here.

"Every day, U.S. adversaries try to shape the information environment in ways that hurt American interests," said Ranking Member Shaheen. "We see it with China's efforts to isolate Taiwan, with Iran's efforts to undermine confidence in American military power and in Russia's efforts to undermine support for Ukraine, to divide Americans and erode confidence in our democracy. Our adversaries treat information as a domain of strategic competition."

Ranking Member Shaheen questioned Ms. Rogers, nominee for CEO of the U.S. Agency for Global Media, on whether she would protect the broadcasters' editorial independence and rebuild rather than weaken the agency.

"Ms. Rogers, you have overseen our public diplomacy efforts over this period. Now the President has nominated you to take over and resuscitate the U.S. Agency for Global Media after Kari Lake's efforts to dismantle it," said Ranking Member Shaheen. "This raises serious concerns about the statutory firewall that is supposed to protect the editorial independence of Radio Free Europe, Voice of America and other international broadcasters from political influence. And given the record on public diplomacy over the last several months, there are real questions about whether this nomination will make things better or worse."

Ranking Member Shaheen also emphasized the critical role the IMF has played in helping Ukraine keep its economy functioning as it defends itself against Russia's aggression to Ms. Jurata, nominee for United States Executive Director to the International Monetary Fund.

"The IMF has played a critical role helping Ukraine keep its economy functioning as it defends itself against Russia's aggression," said Ranking Member Shaheen. "If confirmed, I hope you will continue to ensure the United States remains a strong advocate for Ukraine at the IMF."

The Ranking Member's remarks, as delivered, are below.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and welcome to each of our nominees today, to all of your families and friends and supporters who are here with you.

Every day, U.S. adversaries try to shape the information environment in ways that hurt America's interests. We see it with China's efforts to isolate Taiwan, with Iran's efforts to undermine confidence in American military power and in Russia's efforts to undermine support for Ukraine, to divide Americans and erode confidence in our democracy. Our adversaries treat information as a domain of strategic competition. Iran-a country under crushing sanctions-still found the resources to triple the budget for its state broadcaster. Russia spends roughly $1.5 billion a year on state media and propaganda. And as we know, this is not a new challenge. One former KGB propagandist who defected to the West estimated that "85 percent of the KGB's time, money and manpower was devoted to influence campaigns and ideological warfare." Now, the United States used to understand this.

During the Cold War, we built Voice of America, Radio Free Europe and Radio Liberty to counter Soviet propaganda with fact-based reporting behind the Iron Curtain. We invested in public diplomacy because we understood that influence does matter. We exposed foreign disinformation because we recognized that information is a strategic asset. That commitment continued long after the Cold War. Republicans and Democrats agreed that America had to compete in the information space. Sadly, this Administration has walked away from that tradition. It has gutted U.S. international broadcasting. It has dismantled the State Department's capability for countering foreign propaganda. And it has shifted our public diplomacy from confronting authoritarian regimes to criticizing democratic allies.

And today, we are seeing the consequences. A recent European Council on Foreign Relations poll found-only 11 percent of Europeans now describe the U.S. as an ally, and we can see it here in the poster. Globally, more countries named the United States as the biggest threat to the world than named Russia. Earlier this month, the Pew Research service found that-for the first time in its history-across most of the world, China is now viewed more favorably than the United States, and again, we can see where those lines crossed in 2025. At the very moment we should be strengthening America's ability to compete for influence, this Administration has weakened it.

Ms. Rogers, you have overseen our public diplomacy efforts over this period. Now the President has nominated you to take over and resuscitate the U.S. Agency for Global Media after Kari Lake's efforts to dismantle it. This raises serious concerns about the statutory firewall that is supposed to protect the editorial independence of Radio Free Europe, Voice of America and other international broadcasters from political influence. And given the record on public diplomacy over the last several months, there are real questions about whether this nomination will make things better or worse.

Ms. Jurata, you have been nominated to serve as the United States Executive Director to the International Monetary Fund. The IMF has played a critical role helping Ukraine keep its economy functioning as it defends itself against Russia's aggression. If confirmed, I hope you will continue to ensure the United States remains a strong advocate for Ukraine at the IMF.

And finally, Ms. Carroll, you have been nominated to be the U.S. Ambassador to Trinidad and Tobago. As the Chairman said, Trinidad and Tobago's proximity to Venezuela places it on the front lines of regional instability. The country has faced increased migration pressures, trafficking networks and broader security challenges as a result. If confirmed, I hope you will work to deepen our partnership and support regional stability.

I look forward to hearing from each of you. Thank you.

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