A war correspondent takes a closer look at how your taxpayer money is being spent overseas.

It's our story of the week. I'm Jenna and this is Smarter News.

War correspondent Holly McKay has traveled all over the world on assignment for a variety of different projects, including for smarter news. You've heard from her while she's been reporting from inside

Afghanistan or in war-torn Ukraine. And this week, she just happened to send me a text. And she said

that she had looked through the watchdog reports on the U.S. agency on international development

or USAID.

And she was surprised by what she learned.

Of course, I wanted to hear more.

So here's more of our conversation with Holly McKay.

Holly, let's just start with this question.

Where did USAID come from?

Why was it founded?

What sort of work does it do?

Well, the USAID was founded in the 1960s,

actually under JFK, and it was designed to deliver aid, to foreign aid, to places in need,

to developing countries, things like vaccinations, medical supplies. And it was really,

its goal is, and to a degree still was to be a force for good

from the United States. It was supposed to be, you know, one of the tools in our arsenal that

we could support countries and in return have some reassurances, have some influence in the world.

And that was seen from many different angles.

But I think what we're seeing now with everything come out,

that perhaps that original goal has been eroded over the past decades.

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